How to build a family
by AirborneGirl
Summary: Merri loves Chris. Chris loves Merri. But their road ahead is filled with lots of twists and turns, starting with Merri accepting another man's proposal...Rated T for now. Will be moved to M later.
1. Chapter 1

**How to build a family.**

 **A/N:** Welcome to my second NCIS: New Orleans story, which will be a multi-chapter, Cherri-centric one, including all the usual suspects and some characters which are all my own. I hope you'll enjoy. Also, for the flow of the story, I've let go of my signature style of writing in the second person.

 **A/N II** : This story will be rated M at some point, so it will move into another category by then.

 **Disclaimer** : I do not own the Characters of NCIS: New Orleans and I will hand them back to CBS when I'm done with them.

 **Spoilers** : There aren't any, really. Set somewhere during season two though.

Christopher LaSalle was not a happy camper this Monday morning after Valentine's Day, which was contrary to his normal, upbeat nature. Meredith Brody however, was positively beaming, which was completely contrary for her as well. It made the other members of their little team wonder if, during Mardi Gras, something occult had happened that had made the two agents switch character.

The reason Merri Brody was sporting a grin wider than the Grand Canyon was probably directly linked to the sparkling rock on her ring finger. One that clearly said she was taken. Spoken for. Betrothed. Or whatever the kids called it these days.

The reason Chris LaSalle's frown was as deep as his partner's smile was wide was equally linked to said rock. Not that he begrudged his partner her happiness, but he didn't care much for the man who put the rock on there.

James Lathom. Reporter. A man who had already broken off one engagement to this particular woman and even if he hadn't known her at the time and therefor never witnessed the downfall of the relationship from up close, he knew enough about both Brody and the way she handled relationships in general to know she would not be happy with this guy in the long run. No matter how hard she lied to herself; she couldn't lie to him. He saw right through her.

And since it was his duty, both on and off the job, to protect her from scumbags who were out to hurt her, he was feeling totally off kilter by the knowledge that in this case, she wouldn't appreciate his protection, even when he knew in his gut that she would get hurt again.

And if he was bad at hiding his feelings, well, that was too bad. Not that Brody would notice anyway. She was too busy squealing over her upcoming nuptials with Sonja (another thing he didn't understand and silently resented; she never did like the newest addition to their team much before, let alone confide in her) to notice that, after a stilted and forced "congrats", her normally talkative counterpart had retreated behind his cluttered desk, not saying much of anything to anyone.

He just couldn't help himself. Couldn't force himself to feign happiness when a friend, a member of their own little NCIS family was walking straight toward her destruction.

Ad there wasn't a damn thing he could do to stop it.

 **888**

Indeed, Meredith Brody hadn't noticed her partner's morose mood, hadn't paid any attention to his less than enthusiastic well-wishes. Why would she? She had gotten engaged, finally and unexpectedly. And she was happy with it! Why the hell shouldn't she?

She was a woman who was only a few months shy of stepping over the threshold of the big 4-0. Who was, admittedly, a little skeptical when it came to matters of the heart, but who was also sick and tired of resigning herself to buying her own chocolates and wine on Valentine's Day every single year, watching sappy movies and wondering when her life had become all work and no play.

She had been planning to do exactly that when her doorbell had rung. The only one she could think of stopping over because he too was sadly alone on a day like this, was her partner, but she had been pleasantly surprised when she opened the door to reveal her ex-fiancé, James.

He'd brought the wine, the flowers and the chocolates. The promises she had always wanted to hear coming from him. How he was ready to settle down, start a family and how she was the only one he'd wanted to do this with. How he had always loved her. After drinking the bottle of (heady) wine and opening another one from her own collection, she was more than willing to hear it, to believe it and by the time they made it to her bed, clothes strewn carelessly every which way, his proposal was met with eager enthusiasm.

Admittedly, this morning, as she was getting dressed, her still sleeping fiancé not stirring as she tiptoed around her home, the ring on her finger looked strangely out of sorts. First of all; it was way too big for her rather delicate finger and it wasn't very practical for her chosen profession either. Plus, she dreaded telling her team, her surrogate family. They would be happy for her, at least she hoped they would be, but they were also highly trained officers of the law and if she even showed as much as a hint of doubt over her decision, they would detect it. Perhaps not call her out on it, but yeah…

But what was there to doubt anyway? She was a grown woman and she didn't need anyone's permission to accept a proposal, especially since she didn't have a whole harem to choose from now that her best (child-bearing) days were over. So what if said reason was not the most romantic one? So what if James had walked out on her before? He too wasn't getting any younger and if he said he wanted to settle down and stay put at one place for longer than a few weeks at a time, she wanted to believe him.

She really, really wanted to believe him.

She didn't want to see the skeptical look in her partner's eyes, didn't want to hear the hesitation in Pride's voice when he pulled her into a hug as he congratulated her. Didn't want to hear him suggest she wear the ring on a chain around her neck or better yet, keep it in her locker during office hours.

Heck, the only thing she wanted from them was their support for her decision, to see and recognize that this made her happy, damn it!

Because it did. She was as happy as she ever was. Regardless of the sting she felt every time the blue gaze from her partner landed on her, only to be averted quickly before she could catch him and call him out on it.

If he couldn't be happy for her, that was his problem. She didn't need it or him. Not anymore. She had James now.

 **888**

The day had gone by pretty normal; considering the bombshell that was dropped on them that morning. At least Brody (he couldn't think of her as Merri anymore; the nickname suddenly too private to use on a woman who was engaged to another man) had taken Pride's advice and had taken off the ring, stuffing it in her jeans pocket instead. Not seeing the offensive (why he thought of it that way was something he refused to dwell on) piece of jewelry sparkling in the sunlight as they sat in the car staking out a suspect, had helped him keep up with the most minimal conversation between them possible. The silence was deafening, but he couldn't come up with anything to break it, other than begging her to reconsider. Which he wouldn't do. He had some damn self-esteem left.

Why had she done it? What had made her jump into this ill-conceived plan when she knew how it had ended before? Had the obscene rock thrown her brain off kilter? Did she suffer from the now-or-never syndrome, thinking she would die an old spinster if she didn't snag the first guy who showed an interest in her? God, if that were true, he could have proposed to her, just to save face.

But he never did. True, she was his friend and partner and he liked her a lot. She was, despite her somewhat critical and cynical disposition, a great gal to hang around with. He liked cooking with her, watching movies or a sports game with her and going out for a few (sometimes more than a few) drinks after a particularly tough case. But he also appreciated her calm presence whenever he felt like his life was spinning out of control, like it had ever since Cade had come back into his life. God knows he loved his brother dearly, but his disorder made it very difficult to do so without the constant threat of resentment burning at the edges of his heart.

Not to mention the burning guilt he had felt where his heart was supposed to be, ever since finding Savannah's body lifeless and cold on the floor.

Merri understood. Understood the guilt of wanting to be set free from feeling the responsibility for a sibling, from suffering the guilt of being healthy and alive. To have some peace of mind, if only for a little while. She knew how much you could miss someone, even though Cade was officially still there.

Yeah, she was always there for him. So understanding. He really cared for her and wanted her to be happy.

And yet…Chris didn't believe she would be. He just couldn't picture it. Merri being all domestic, having another guy's arms around her, cooking for him, watching movies with him, perhaps even getting pregnant pretty soon, talking china patters and curtains and nurseries, trading her gun for a milk bottle...

Suddenly his heart stopped and bile rose in his throat as the true implications hit him. She would be gone soon. She might not give up her job the first few months, but there was the honeymoon first, then maybe a child on the way, assigning her to a desk job instead. Maternity leave. And even if that didn't happen (a baby), then she still would go straight home to her husband after a busy day. No more meals shared between them, no more movie nights (more often than not with her ending up asleep draped half on top of him) or watching a game together. No more automatically turning toward each other after a hard case.

He had basically lost his very best friend. And she hadn't even acknowledged it. So yeah, he was angry. He had every right to be!

With an angry gesture, he stuffed the remainder of the donut she got him this morning back in the box it had come from, having lost his apatite entirely, which was even more out of character for him than this stifling silence.

If Brody looked shocked (and even a little sad); he pretended not to see it.

 **888**

Merri wanted to scream! She had hoped that, after the initial surprise and awkwardness had worn off, things would settle down and she could just go back to doing her job. She'd had no idea that her partner would make it so difficult for her. She had made concessions, hadn't she? Had taken the ring off after Pride pointed out it could be a hindrance in her work? She hadn't even gushed (much) and she hadn't gone all crazy over bridal magazines and venues. She probably didn't want a big wedding do anyway. A simple ceremony in a pretty dress she could reuse would suit her a lot better. After all, it should be about the commitment you made to one another, right? And it wasn't like an almost 40-year old, hardly pristine bride dressed in an immaculate white monstrosity wasn't the least bit pathetic.

So already going without the seemingly required bridezilla behavior, how much more (or less) could she do to stop this man-child next to her from sulking all day? He hadn't even eaten the donut she got him, knowing that he would get crabby and unfocussed without a sugar break (or several) during the day.

His silence started to irk her. Normally, his inane yapping and his constant happy-go-lucky attitude grated on her nerves, but this…this disregard for her? It irked. No, scratch that. It didn't irk, it freakin' hurt! What had she done to deserve this attitude? As far as she knew, she'd always been there for him. Whenever Cade was acting up and he needed a back-up, she was there. Whenever a case was hitting them hard for some reason (more often than not when young children were involved), they would gravitate towards each other for support. So why was this different? Was he really this selfish?

Unable to stand the pressure in the car any longer, she turned to him.

"I'm happy you know."

Why that was the first thing coming out of her mouth, she had no idea. Why it came out as a defense, she didn't know either.

Chris dutifully nodded.

"That's wonderful, Brody. I'm happy for you."

Brody. Not Merri. He was creating as much distance as he could, if not physically, than at least mentally. Professionally. Even his posture had closed off, the warmth he normally radiated all but gone. She was sure the temperature inside the vehicle had just dropped another five degrees. Suppressing a shiver, Meredith looked outside the window, pretending to try and locate their suspect, but not seeing much of anything as angry tears obscured her vision.

She tried again, against better judgement. Anything was better than this stalemate.

"It doesn't sound like you mean it."

"Well, that makes two of us."

The sharpness in his voice made her turn toward him.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean, LaSalle?"

Last names. Two could play that game.

His eyes were a stormy dark grey and his relaxed smile had morphed into something ugly when he answered.

"I'm happy you know? Didn't come out very convincing, Brody."

"Well I AM! I'm just very disappointed that my friends, my surrogate family can't seem to be happy for me too!"

"I would be if I didn't think you were making one hell of a mistake! And doing it knowingly and willingly too!"

"Who says I'm making a mistake? If I want to get married, which I do, than I damn well can, LaSalle, and I don't need either your permission or your blessing."

"Then stop asking for it. Stop mentioning it. Go ahead and get hitched. I…"

With a tired gesture, he swiped his hand over his face and scraped his throat.

"Never mind. You're right. I should be happy for you. I'll try. I just….I'll try."

She wanted to snap at him again, tell him that if it was that much trouble, he should just forget it, but something in the way he said it made her change her mind and clamp her mouth shut.

He had sounded so…forlorn. Resigned. Like…

Oh God. He was feeling left out.

How stupid of her. How incredibly inconsiderate. No wonder he was angry. She hadn't even stopped for one second to take into account how she had singlehandedly changed the dynamic of their duo. She had thrown him a curveball and had expected him to catch it and simply go on without a backwards glance. Like nothing would change between them.

While everything would.

The guilt hit her like a ton of bricks and the confinements of the car weren't big enough to hold it all in. She needed to say something, do something, but her words got stuck in her throat, their implications burning a painful hole in her esophagus, making it hard to swallow. She tried a weak apology, knowing it wasn't enough.

"Chris, I…"

And somehow, the reassuring hand on her knee did little to calm her. Neither did his soft, infinitely sad voice.

"We'll work it out, Brody. No need to feel upset."

Too late for that now.

 **888**

What a day. He had no idea how he got through it, but by God, he did. And he was happy to have the house to himself, since Cade was still with their momma.

Yet, being alone in the house made him fidgety. He had long since redecorated the place after Savannah's death, but sometimes the mere idea of him relaxing on the couch a few steps from where he had found her was too much for him to take. His first instinct was to go out; but he didn't have the energy for it. Besides, he had promised Kind he would tone down the hunt for female company and would not let him down.

The next idea was to text Merri and ask her to come over. It had always been the ideal solution; having the female company he enjoyed, even with the added tension of a sexual spark, without the compulsion to drag her off to bed with him (okay, okay, the compulsion was there, of course there was, he was neither blind nor stupid, but Merri was no one-night-stand material and he had always respected the boundaries of their partnership). But not even a second after he instinctively started typing the message, today's reality came crashing down on him and he quickly deleted his invitation, heading for the fridge to find himself a cold beer instead.

There would never be any more if these impromptu sessions between them. She had another man to go home to now at the end of the day. If the guy had actually learned how to stay put this time. He wasn't too keen on picking up the pieces after James was done with his path of destruction, no matter how appealing it seemed to his more masochistic side to hold a crying Meredith Brody in his arms.

And damn it he hadn't meant to scream at her in the car. She'd been close to tears and really, he could have kept his cool a little better. A lot better.

This was her choice and he had better learn to be supportive if he didn't want to lose all of her. If he was about to lose her as a working partner, that would be bad enough (though he supposed Sonja would do just fine when she had a little more training behind her belt), but he was loathe to lose her as a friend too, even if they would have to redefine their relationship.

Would it hurt? Like hell, probably, but if anyone was worth the pain, it was her.

Cold beer in one hand, a hastily thrown together sandwich in the other, he sat down on the couch, zapping through the channels of his TV until he found a basketball game, turning the sound up so he wouldn't have to hear his own mulling thoughts.

It helped nada. His mind remained stubbornly focused on one subject.

He had no idea how or when she had become the most important person in his life, when his own world had started to orbit around her, when she had become his center.

But it had happened. She had happened and now he was feeling like a lost little puppy. And a resentful one at that. While part of it was directed at her, another, bigger part blamed life in general. Hadn't he had enough shit happen to him lately? Hadn't losing Savannah been enough? Or trying to guide Cade from one episode to another without time to breathe? Or trying to track down all the bad people in the city before they could hurt someone serving their country?

Was he never to have a lucky break? Find someone to love? For real, not counting the willing women he had lured into his lair these past few months? He had once thought he would always have an endless source of love and happiness to give and that someday, as long as he gave it to the right people, it would pay off, one way or another. But lately he felt like he would run out very soon. Between the murder of his girlfriend and his brother's illness, he was completely depleted of his once so overflowing cup of generous goodness.

He had needed Merri, had counted on her, more than he realized and perhaps more than he should have, to replenish it, even though friendship was all they ever shared. It had been enough, but now that that source was dwindling down (no matter what they both would do, Chris wasn't fooled into believing it would be even remotely the same), he wasn't sure he wouldn't fall into depression himself.

And then who would take care of both brothers LaSalle? King? Loretta? NCIS?

God help him, he was doomed.

Without Merri, he was worthless.

 _Thanks for reading. I have fourteen more chapters to go. Hope you'll stick with me._


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N** : Hi everyone, here's the second chapter! Enjoy!

 **Disclaimer** : See chapter 1

The days after Merri's announcement were strained. Though she insisted on having a small wedding and tried not to go overboard boring her colleagues to death with planning details (though Sonja kept bringing over every bridal magazine she seemed to be able to get her hands on; all of a sudden eager to please the older female agent), she felt her partner retreating from her. He was as clever and quirky as ever, would never willingly put her in any danger and would catch a bullet for her without a second thought, but they hadn't shared a casual dinner anymore and he had stopped blatantly taking everything on her desk and using it as his own. And whereas in the beginning, his lack of physical boundaries had grated on her nerves, she had to admit to missing it now.

Missing him was more accurate.

Of course she didn't particularly blame him. In fact, she knew how hard he was trying to be supportive, that his retreating from her was only because he wanted to get used to the new situation as soon as possible.

As did she. She loved James, really she did. But being with him on a more regular basis, having him around whenever she was home, it was…weird. Good weird, obviously, but weird. There were a lot of things, small things, he did differently than her. He wasn't the least bit domestic and since Merri herself wasn't Suzy Homemaker either, her small guesthouse was a minefield of discarded shirts and socks that never made it anywhere near the hamper. There were other issues (domestic, political) they didn't agree on and sometimes she wondered if she knew him at all.

But she would get to know him right? If he was going to be her husband, she'd better start putting some stock in his opinions, standing by him more often instead of always putting her own thoughts and ideas first. Also; what was the harm in picking up after him? He was so used to living on the road or in a hotel room; it was no wonder it took time for him to realize his bed wasn't made by maids and no mints were left on his pillow.

Too bad he wasn't much of a sparring partner. She and Chris could disagree on something, vehemently sometimes, but then have an honest discussion about it, always coming out somewhere in the middle and still appreciating the other ones valid points. Plus, there weren't many big things they disagreed on at all. Despite of their overall mirrored upbringing, their opinions on the important things in life were mostly the same. They lived by a similar moral code.

James however didn't just disagree with her, he would often insinuate that as a reporter, he had seen more of the world than the average person (conveniently forgetting that her job hadn't bound her to a chair in one spot either) and therefor his opinions of that day were tomorrow's facts. He simply was never wrong and whenever she dared to make an opposite statement or challenge the many idiosyncrasies in his own words, he would look at her with a rather condescending smile and agree just to placate her. It annoyed her, but when she called him out on it, he had merely shrugged and told her he wanted to keep the peace between them.

She wondered if this way of peacekeeping would be conducive for their longtime relationship. But then again, neither would her comparing everything he did to Chris. With the latter always seemingly doing it better.

He was on her mind way too much considering she was wearing (or at least carrying) another man's ring. But for now, she was okay with chalking it up to the fact that Chris was with her at work and that said work was hardly a cushy 9 to 5 office cubicle job.

As again was proven that very same moment. They'd been chasing a suspect down the streets, after he had wriggled himself free from Merri's grip and managed to push her away from him. She had tripped and fallen over the garbage can he had pulled over to slow down her progress. Though she wasn't hurt, it had taken her a moment to get back up on her feet again and he now had quite a head start on her. Chris yelled at her that he had found a shortcut and would attempt to cut off the fleeing perp. Unfortunately the guy still managed to force a delivery truck to a stop, pull the scared young driver out of his seat and get in.

Chris came running out of a side street and tried to orient himself, but before he got a good view of the situation, the truck came up behind him and he slammed to the ground, the mirror of the truck hitting him hard in the left shoulder blade as he half turned and tried too late to jump out of the way.

"Chris!"

Her scream sounded panicky even in her own ears when she watched her partner fall. It had happened out of her line of sight, so she couldn't have warned him and she was too far away to or be of any help. She immediately called for an ambulance, all the while running after the quickly disappearing truck.

Merri fired a few shots, but the truck was moving too fast and swerving to avoid the bullets and she couldn't get a direct hit. Their suspect got away. At least the delivery truck was painted a lurid green and wouldn't be so hard to track down and the driver, though shaking on his feet, was otherwise unharmed and clear enough to make a statement. She left him with Pride, who had come too late to be of any assistance, which angered him to no end.

Merri ran over to check on her partner. He was conscious, lucid and livid, cursing his bad luck, bad aim and clutching his aching shoulder. She nearly had to club him over the head to get him to agree to go get into the ambulance which had just arrived to take him to the hospital. Without asking for permission, she clambered in Chris' truck and followed them. At the ER, they made an X-ray, reset his dislocated shoulder and sent him on his way with his arm in a sling and a prescription for some painkillers which Merri knew would never be filled. Chris hated taking medication of any kind.

And therefore it was normal procedure for her to drive him back to their headquarters, march him straight into their bathroom, order him to take of his shirt (ignoring the suggestive wiggle of his eyebrows and the grin that threatened to split his face in half, despite of the pain he was still in) and have him sit down on the bench in front of her. Straddling the bench, she applied cooling lotion on the darkening bruise where his shoulder blade had slammed against the side mirror of the truck.

And it was just her concern for his health and wellbeing (and seeing the nasty deep purple bruising with the outline of the mirror imprinted on it) that made her touch stay light and tender and that made her bite her lower lip to shreds whenever he would groan in pain.

Or moan in pleasure, which he did too, though she knew he was trying to disguise it. Which he never had before.

This wasn't the first time she had put her hands on a bare part of his skin that was hard for him to reach. Sonja was not really the caring type and he was probably too embarrassed to ask Pride, so chores like these had always landed on her plate. Not that she had ever minded. She'd always taken his comments and moans with a grain of salt, knowing the man had no bodily shame (no reason for it either) and didn't mean anything demeaning by it other than to get a rise out of her for his own amusement. His shit-eating grin when she would whack him on the head pretty much said it all.

He never had to know that yes; it did in fact make her body temperature rise a few notches. Why wouldn't it? She was a warm blooded female, not ashamed of having a healthy libido and Christopher LaSalle was a gorgeous male specimen, cuts and bruises notwithstanding. And for some reason, the pendant he wore on the necklace she had given him, only added to the attraction she was feeling.

But then she would remember they were friends first and foremost, that he was indeed injured and that he was her junior by several years and probably not the least bit interested in her as a sexual partner. Besides, then there was Savannah to take into account. Merri wasn't quite sure he had successfully put her murder behind him; at least not enough to start a relationship. And she also knew that she cared about Chris too much to even consider having a casual romp between the sheets with him, no matter how satisfactory that activity was bound to be.

And now there was James to be considered and Merri knew Chris was trying to be a gentleman this time, his way of acknowledging the eminent change in their friendship.

It really shouldn't hurt, nor should the quick way he yanked his shirt back over his head when she was done. Instead of him letting her know he respected her new status as an engaged woman, it felt like her hands had tainted him somehow; her touch more an invasion of privacy than a cure for his ache.

"Thanks, Brody."

Even his voice was strained and he was still only using her last name. In order not to let him see her conflicted feelings, Merri just nodded and headed to the sink to wash the residual lotion from her hands, rubbing them harder than necessary just to try (in vain) to get rid of the emotions whirling through her.

She had given James a massage the night before. Not because he was injured, but because she thought he might like it. He had liked it and they had made love afterwards. And it had been good.

Then why, as she closed her eyes, was it Chris' skin she felt underneath her fingertips?

What the hell was wrong with her?

888

Boy was he relieved the day was over. It had been a doozy. First, Merri seemed to be in an agitated mood (trouble in paradise already?), then their suspect was less than cooperative, not to mention a fast runner, then he sees his partner fall, giving the perp a head start and before he knows it, he feels himself get barreled over by a truck, dislocating his shoulder, sending his partner into a frenzy.

Sure, he knows he's lucky she still cares, what with the way he's been treating her since her engagement (he's not trying to upset her, but they're having a lot of difficulty finding their footing around each other these days), but her nagging him to go to the hospital was not helping lifting his mood. Chris got pretty angry and volatile when he was either in pain or outsmarted by one of the bad guys. Today, he was both.

Of course she was right in pushing him into the ambulance, where his shoulder was set again, the X-rays showing that it was miraculously only dislocated and badly bruised, but not showing any fractures or deep tissue damage. Which was the only good news.

Then came the worst part: getting back to HQ and realizing he had nobody else to help him with the cooling antibacterial lotion he was given at the pharmacy along with the painkillers he would never take. Nobody but bloody Merri.

He'd handed her the tube and she had taken it without comment, avoiding all eye contact as she told him to take his shirt off and sit down on the narrow bench in front of her.

Getting lotion rubbed over a painful muscle never used to be this much of a strain before, but now?

He used to love trying to get a rise out of Merri, loved to see her flushed face whenever he made a noise of pleasure (never having to fake it, really), which she never quite knew how to hide from him, no matter how suave she thought she was.

Merri was a pretty gal after all and it was hardly a punishment to have her gentle hands touch him. And at the risk of sounding arrogant, Chris knew he had no reason to be ashamed of his appearance, nor his manners, really. It was all in good fun.

The fun was over though. Regardless of the fact Merri didn't wear her ring during working hours, none of them ever forgot she was engaged, which automatically meant that however harmless their flirtations (by lack of better description) might have seemed in the past, they ought to stop.

Applying the cooling lotion was to be nothing more than helping out a partner. Like handing a band aid or getting a drink of water. As long as it wasn't serious enough to need a doctor. When in doubt, they could always consult Loretta.

He would have asked the kind pathologist to help him out when they were supposed to stop by the morgue later, if the idea of her handling dead bodies day after day with those same hands didn't give him the heebie-jeebies. Other than her, there were only King or Sebastian to ask and that was….no. Talking about heebie-jeebies. Awkward would not even begin to cover it.

He'd done his best, hadn't he? Not to make it too weird for her? Not to rile her up like he used to? To make it strictly a kind request, totally PG? To hide the fact he missed their playfulness?

And yet…

He suppressed another groan, one that had absolutely nothing to do with the quickly receding pain in his shoulder. Well, at least the stuff was working.

The resentment he had felt when Merri (he had to start thinking of her as Brody or, better yet, Special Agent Brody) had first announced her engagement had faded (mostly). What remained was a constant dull ache, like a rotten tooth you kept prodding at with your tongue. Where once there was a list of fun stuff to do on their nights and weekends off, there was now an equally long list of do's and don'ts (especially don'ts) in Brody's presence.

No more roguish winks sent her way to try and make her blush so deliciously.  
No more stealing food or coffee from her desk, completely disregarding the fact she had already taken a bite or sip and they were swapping bodily fluids by proxy.  
No more allowing invading thoughts about how much fun it would be to swap those fluids in some other way.  
No more innuendo poorly disguised as help with her crossword puzzles.  
No more help with her crossword puzzles at all since he probably couldn't help himself.  
No more casually leaning a little too close over her shoulder to catch a whiff of her sweet, clean scent.  
No more digging through her go-bag to try and identify the source of said scent.

They were all innocent enough in his mind, but he had a distinct feeling that to any woman's fiancé, it may not seem that way. And he would never ever intentionally embarrass his partner (work partner only) in front of the man she planned on spending the rest of her life with.

Only after he watched her wipe her hands and retreat from the bathroom, did Chris let out the breath he was holding, coming out as more of a sad sigh.

How could he miss her already, only minutes after she had been so tantalizingly close to him? And how was he supposed to get over that?

What the hell was wrong with him?


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N** : Thanks to those who took the time to let me know they like my story so far, whether by reviews or adding me to their alert/favorite lists. And welcome to chapter 3, where we'll go bridal gown shopping!

 **Disclaimer** : Meet the first OC of the story: Viv. Hope you like her. Other than Viv, I don't own anything.

Merri wanted to scream! Her level of tolerance was always low when it came to girly BS, but this was just pushing it.

She was standing in a bridal shop, on a Saturday morning. Which wasn't too smart to begin with, but she would be damned before she took a day off for something like dress shopping! Heck, she would have been a lot happier if she could have just picked something and order it online. But of course there weren't any bridal dresses for sale online that didn't fall into her ever increasing "oh puh-lease" category.

So she had given in and looked up some addresses of bridal shops. Where she now felt extremely exposed, even if she knew she had a pretty nice, well-trained body which didn't show a lot of decay for being almost forty. But she was, admittedly, not wearing her most flattering underwear, again having stalled doing her laundry until nothing but her most ancient stuff was clean. On top of that, she felt herself getting increasingly annoyed at the blustering salesladies who did not seem to understand she didn't want any frilly girly drapery that would make her feel like a meringue and set her back two paychecks, even if her parents had offered to pay for a wedding dress whenever she would finally tie the knot. As it was, she hadn't even told them she was getting married at all, since she didn't feel like inviting her overbearing mother over to come pick out her dress (and everything else for that matter), a condition she was sure would have come with the offer.

From the moment she walked in, alone (she didn't need an entourage; this was not an episode of 'Say yes to the dress' and she was perfectly capable of making up her own mind), she had been clear, or so she thought. No lace, no bling, no pouf, no princess skirt, no veil. Just something clean and modest. And preferably with a price tag that didn't require a second job to pay off.

Now, ninety minutes and eleven dresses later, the best they had come up with that was supposed to match up to her long list of no's, was something in between a nightgown and a Halloween costume. Too white, too wide and looking like something her grandmother would have worn to bed to ward off her grandfather's advances. No wonder her mother was an only child.

The elderly of the two salesladies (hastily being dragged into the session by her poor haggard young colleague), was fluttering around her like a killing bee on speed, straightening the fabric here and there and tut-tutting about her less than elegant posture (elegance was not a requirement in the NCIS job description) while her colleague was sent somewhere deeper into the war zone to find the accessories that were supposed to somehow magically turn this monstrosity into the dress of her dreams, never mind that said dress probably didn't exist.

When she came back with pretty much everything Merri had told her explicitly not to get, the thoroughly annoyed bride to be gave up. Without paying either lady any more attention, she stalked back to the dressing room and yanked the offending garment over her head, tossing it aside with little regard as she stepped into her jeans and pulled the shirt over her head. The shirt was a darker shade of blue and smelled vaguely like…oh hell, how did she end up wearing one of her partner's shirts? Probably since it was the only clean thing she could find in her drawer this morning and she figured it was her fiancé's. Chris must have left it at her place ages ago after one of their movie nights ended up with him staying over. On the couch, that is. She must have forgotten to give it back to him. Oh well, it was what she'd been wearing walking into this place, so she'd be wearing it to get as far away as possible from her definition of hell!

Were there really women who did this for fun?

She tried to call James to come and pick her up. He'd borrowed her car earlier (his was in the shop), and had dropped her off at the mall before he had to be at a meeting with his editor, who wasn't too pleased that one of his best investigative journalist had asked for more local assignments for the foreseeable future.

James didn't answer his phone, so his meeting must not have ended yet. Feeling lost and still way too hyped up to wander around the crowded mall on a Saturday afternoon (she's also missed lunch by now), she shrugged and sent a quick text to her partner.

 _At the Mall. Done with dress shopping. James took my car. Can you please come pick me up? Please, please, please?_

As she was scanning the place for an empty bench, her phone buzzed with a message from Chris.

 _Salesladies scare ya, Brody? Or ya got a lace-overdose?_

Damn him for knowing her so well. She could almost hear him chuckle. Bastard.

 _Shut up and get your ass over here, LaSalle!_

 _Alright, keep your panties on. I can be there in twenty minutes. South entrance parking. Coffee and beignets would be nice, thanks._

She sent her thanks back and found a cafeteria, where she ordered his coffee exactly the way she knew he liked it, as well as one for herself and a dozen of the pastry Chris had wanted her to get. By the time her order was processed and she walked out of the busy mall, biting in her first beignet to stop her lunch-deprived stomach from roaring like a black bear and alarming the entire mall, she spotted Chris' truck. Relieved he was there, she headed toward him, handing him his drink and the bag of pastries when he opened the passenger door for her.

"Thanks, Brody."

"No thank you for coming to the rescue."

He grinned his lopsided grin. The one that usually either landed him in trouble or in a woman's bed. If that was not the same.

"That bad?"

"Horrible. How do other women do this?"

"What, be a bride to be?"

"Yes, and liking it too!"

"Dunno, partner. I ain't never been a bride."

"Good thing. I don't think a dress would work for you."

"I beg to differ, ma'am. I think I have great legs for a mini skirt."

Merri rolled her eyes at him, but couldn't hide her amusement for long at the mental image of her partner (who, admittedly, had very nice legs; if a bit hairy) dressed in a short lacy frilly mini-dress.

He grinned again and after taking a sip of his coffee and a bite of a beignet, set the car in motion.

"Whereto, miss Brody?"

Even talking with his mouth full, he was trying to be a gentleman.

"Home I guess, I'm done shopping for now."

"May I suggest something first?"

"Sure. What did you have in mind?"

He glanced sideways, eyes sparkling.

"You trust me?"

"Against better judgment."

It earned her a glare, belied by the grin that followed.

"Good. Now no more questions. I won't let you down."

Merri nodded her consent. After all, she did trust her partner explicitly and without reserve. She simply leaned back in her seat and enjoyed her drink and (though he would have to kill her before she admitted it) the lovely cheesy country music station he was listening to, even singing along with the songs he knew in his sweet Alabama lilt.

Her earlier irritation seeped from her body and she was lulled into a sense of utter peace and relaxation.

Meanwhile, Chris was driving them away from the crowdedness of downtown New Orleans, veering off to the interstate.

"Chris, where the hell are we going?"

"Bama."

It came out so stoically, she almost forgot to be surprised.

"Eh, why?"

"Thought you trusted me, partner."

"I do trust you."

"Then you'll see."

No matter how hard she tried after that, there was no coaxing their final destination out of him. When they arrived in Mobile, Alabama, Chris took them to a neighborhood that looked neat and well-kept, far away from the hustle and bustle she knew her vivacious partner preferred. She had no idea what they were doing there, but she actually did trust him, so she was more curious than worried.

He finally stopped in what looked like a small shopping area, filled with thrift shops and boutiques. Gallantly helping her out of the truck, he took her hand without thinking and walked into one of the nicer looking places, calling out a name as he stepped over the threshold.

"Viv, you there sweetheart?"

A small, dark skinned and extremely elegant looking lady in her early sixties appeared from behind a curtain in the back of the shop, squealing in obvious delight when she recognized her visitors, or one of them at least.

"Christopher LaSalle, it's been ages! Where have you been, boy?"

She smothered Merri's partner in an affectionate hug, which he returned with a genuinely pleased smile.

"You know me Viv. Fighting the bad guys, getting into trouble, saving the damsels."

Merri snorted at that, earning herself a look of disapproval from Viv and a roguish grin (that definitely did NOT set her stomach aflutter) from Chris.

"It's good to see you. What brought you to my place today? And who is this pretty lady you brought with you?"

Without thinking it over, Chris grabbed Merri's hand again and pulled her forward a little.

"Viv, meet my partner Merri. She's looking for a wedding dress and I figured you'd have something she'd like. Can you help her?"

The elderly lady squealed again in delight, pulling Merri into a warm hug, all the while scolding Chris.

"Why didn't you say you were getting married, naughty boy? And to such a beauty too! I'll be glad to help your bride find the perfect dress, but you got to go, dear. No groom should see his bride in her gown before the wedding. So shoo, shoo."

She was trying to push him out the door, but luckily, Chris managed to speak up before being forced away by this surprisingly strong little lady.

"Viv, Viv, hold on. Merri's the one getting hitched, not me. I'm her work partner, not the groom."

It worked. He was released from the iron grip. However, he wished he could be released from the hollow feeling in his stomach as well. Perhaps leaving this place until Merri was done wasn't such a bad idea after all.

Completely ignoring him now that her mind was focused on his partner, Viv let Chris stand where he was and gently pushed Merri further into the store, measuring tape at the ready.

The next thirty minutes found him sitting on a chair in the back of the store, listening to, but not seeing the flurry of activity behind the curtains of the dressing room. For some reason, he was fidgety. He toyed with his phone, leafed through a discarded newspaper (only two days old), stood, sat down again…

The curtain was finally pushed aside and Merri stepped out, looking uncertainly at him.

His heart stopped for a second and he hoped she hadn't seen his convulsive swallowing. Fighting the urge to wipe his suddenly sweaty hands on his jeans, he give her a (hopefully) friendly smile. Yet his voice almost betrayed him, sounding way too raspy for his own liking.

"Oh Merri, you…"

He was at a loss for words. The dress was an ivory silk sleek gown, showing off her well-trained figure and maintaining the perfect balance between sexy and stylish. The neckline was modest, the small train adding length, the split showing just enough curvy leg, but what did him in was the bare back, giving him a view he knew he would never get out of his mind.

Merri smiled at the genuine compliment of her partner, the look of open admiration and the lack of words warming her heart. It felt strange to be standing here before him in what was to be her wedding dress and not for the first time, she wondered why they seemed to be tugging at the set boundaries of their partnership, going from friends to barely talking to sharing something this…well… intimate with him in the time span of just a few weeks.

The overexposure made her feel nervous and though she had every intention of buying this dress (the price was fair and she knew she wouldn't find anything closer to what she was looking for anywhere) she couldn't wait to change out of it and get back into her more comfortable, everyday clothing that would at least wipe away the look of utter adoration from her partner's face. She could handle him better in her normal outfit.

Even if said outfit was partly his; a detail she hoped he would overlook.

Ten minutes and a ten percent discount (for friends of friends) later, Merri stepped out into the balmy afternoon, the box which contained her dress in her arms, waiting for Chris, who was lingering in the store for reasons she could only guess.

Inside the store, it was Viv who had stopped her partner from following her out. She had known the LaSalle family for years (being a friend of the boy's mother) and had watched Chris grow up in the shadow of his troubled brother. Never having been blessed with children of her own, she loved the young man like he was of her own flesh and blood and often complimented him for his good manners, his patience and his resilience, which he had needed more than most children and young adults while growing up.

She hoped more than anything that he would find some happiness of his own. When he had stepped in with the pretty lady and had asked for a wedding dress, her heart had surged. Her boy had finally found the one! Obviously she had known Savannah as well, but though she was sad the woman had died before her time, she was never a fan of her as a life partner for the youngest of the LaSalle boys. The girl had never had the kind of personality Chris needed.

No, this lady was better, so much better for him. More mature, smarter and stronger. Less naïve and fragile looking. It had taken all of her skills to maintain her composure when Chris announced that he wasn't this lady's groom-to-be. Not that it was any of her business (because if it was, behold…), but her motherly heart had seen the sadness in his eyes, the dejectedness in his voice, the slight slump of his shoulders.

No doubt in her mind that Christopher was in love and no doubt either that this woman loved him too. Why she wanted to marry another man was a mystery to her, but as she was gently folding the dress she had known would fit this woman like a glove, into the flat white box, she had not even a shadow of a doubt that this dress would not be worn for the intended event.

That was one wedding that would never take place.

Viv would never claim to be a fortune teller of any kind, but she did have great human instincts and had learned a long time ago to listen to her gut feeling first.

Today her gut was telling her that Chris LaSalle would not lose this lady quite yet. Not to whomever it was she had promised to say yes to. Her heart wasn't in it. Her eyes were dull and she hadn't shared even one specific character trade of her fiancé. Normally, people who were in love gushed constantly about their beloved but other than a name, Merri hadn't divulged a single thing.

And then there was that LOOK. With capitals indeed. As she stepped out of the curtained off dressing area and her eyes caught those of Chris, the air had crackled and sizzled like before an upcoming thunderstorm. It had given Viv goosebumps and for a lady who had seen it all, that was saying a lot.

Merri had obviously been spooked by it, because she had hastily retreated behind the curtains and Chris? He had scraped his throat and found his way to the bathroom to cool off. When Merri came back out in her normal clothes they had avoided all eye contact and as Viv had packed the dress in tissue paper before gently placing it in the box, Chris had pretended to get a series of messages on his phone.

The young man's partner had stepped outside after a softly uttered thank you, but Viv knew she could not let the boy go like this. Her forlorn little boy. The son she'd always wished she had.

"Do not fret Christopher."

"What do you mean, Viv?"

Chris knew people considered the wizened elderly lady as somewhat clairvoyant, but his job had taught him to be at least a bit cynical to those claiming to know more about what happened between heaven and earth, especially while working in a city like New Orleans. But he was not in that city now and he loved this lady so much and held her in such esteem that he would never be impolite to her, even if he had a hard time believing her sometimes.

"Mind my words, dear boy, that this is a wedding that will never take place. You haven't lost her yet."

A small, wrinkled hand softly squeezed his own.

"Don't give up on her, son."

There was nothing to say to that. He nodded, hoping she would be right, but not daring to put much stock into her firm faith.

The way it was now, Merri Brody would soon become Mrs. Lathom. And there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it.

The ride back to her home was mostly silent, but instead of the comfortable atmosphere on the way to the store, it was stifled and filled with things that should never be mentioned out loud. And no matter how many times he turned up the volume of his radio, the noise couldn't drown out the silence between the partners. Her car was parked outside her home and she gave a little smile. Perhaps seeing her fiancé and spending some quality time with him would remind her she made the right choice again.

She didn't want to think of the reason why she needed to be reminded of that in the first place. Nor did she want to think of the fact that every time she thought of her dress, it was her partner's face that came to her mind's eye.

She was going mad.

Without looking Chris in the eye, she thanked him and got out of the car like the devil was chasing her, grabbing the box with the dress from the back seat as nothing more than an unfortunate afterthought.

The slamming of the car door sounded a lot like his heart breaking into hundreds of little pieces.

He was going crazy.

 _Reviews are much appreciated little gifts. Please leave one. Thank you very much!_


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N** : Okay, now she has a dress, but not without a struggle. And Merri's problems are far, far from over. Read and find out…

 **Disclaimer** : No new characters in this chapter, so none of it is mine…

She entered the house with the box underneath her arm, greeting James as he emerged from the kitchen, where he'd been making himself some dinner. He kissed her sweetly and Merri, still trying to wash away the guilt of once again painting him in a negative light, kissed him back with all the eagerness she could muster.

"How was your day, darling?"

James was already walking back to the kitchen, forcing Merri to follow him or talk to his back, something she quite resented as it made her feel not at all important; as if he merely asked her these questions out of courtesy, yet couldn't save her a moment's time to actually hear the answer. She put the box on the kitchen table and poured herself a drink, not offering him anything. If he could be rude; so could she.

"It was great. I found a really nice dress."

"Good. I'm happy. I know you were dreading the dress shopping. Where did you find it?"

"Just a small boutique."

She was hesitant to tell him she had crossed two state lines to find a dress. It sounded ridiculous. Plus, if she did, it meant she would have to explain where she had gotten the idea from as well as how she had gotten there, as he knew she did not have many female friends who could have taken her to a specific little place in Alabama they happened to know about.

She had forgotten that the name of the boutique was printed on the box, the address in smaller print underneath. She could tell the moment he had read it as his eyebrows knotted together in a confused frown.

"Mobile, Alabama? You actually went to Alabama for a wedding dress?"

Immediately defensive, Merri countered.

"Is that such a big deal? It's not like I flew to Paris or something. I just couldn't find anything I liked in the bridal stores downtown."

"So you just did what, call a taxi? Hopped on a bus and decided Mobile was the right place to be? And there you just happened to come across a store named 'Vivacious'? Or did one of your many, many friends know about this magical place?"

Why did it bother him so much? She had known he wouldn't understand, but hadn't counted on such a display of hostility. What was going on here?

"What does it matter where I went? I got the perfect dress. Would you please drop it?"

"Not unless you tell me what gave you the idea to go there. And how you got there."

Getting angry now, Merri huffed.

"I don't have to tell you anything, James. I'm not your child or your slave and I don't answer to you. Not if your question is about you not trusting me and trying to control me instead of you actually showing some interest in my comings and goings."

His look could only be described as menacing when he turned to face her.

"Oh but I am interested in my fiancé's whereabouts, especially when it's perfectly clear she's not being honest with me."

"How am I not being honest with you?"

"If you are, why can't you just tell me you've been traipsing around Mobile with your pal Chris? Or did you think I wouldn't recognize his truck pulling up front?"

Chris. Of course. There was the rub. But still…

"I didn't tell you because it's not a big deal. He's a friend. A good friend. Am I not allowed to have friends anymore?"

"Sure you are. But you spend an awful lot of time with him. And now you go bridal shopping with him too? Don't you have any female friends to do this with? Or at least a gay guy if you insist on having a man around?"

"Wow, James, I never thought you were this sexist. What the hell does it matter that Chris helped me find my dress? I only asked him to come pick me up from the mall because you took my car to go see your editor."

"And you couldn't have just gotten a taxi home?"

"I could, but that's not the point, is it? The point is, I have found a home, a real family here in New Orleans with my colleagues. We look out for each other. So yeah, I called Chris and he suggested we go to Mobile. He's known the owner of the boutique all his life. It was a suggestion that paid off. I fail to see what the big whoop is all about!"

"Of course you would, Merri. In your world, it's absolutely normal to allow a work partner to integrate into your private life like that. To even allow him to go shopping with you for the most important day of your life!"

"That's because it IS normal, James. And if Chris had been short for Christine instead of Christopher, you wouldn't have batted a damn eyelid!"

"Because then you wouldn't have worshipped the ground he walks upon. Saint Christopher, can never do wrong. Patriot Saint of all desperate women! I just don't get why he has to be around you every damn moment of every damn day!"

"Well, excuse me for not having a nine to five cushy office job, or better yes, sitting home barefoot and pregnant, waiting for my hubby to come home so I can serve him first dinner and then myself on a silver platter! Bad guys usually don't work on the clock, you know. I happen to love my job, and I happen to trust Chris with my life, something you should be grateful for!"

She was yelling at full force now, angry tears springing in her eyes and her emotions so conflicted she didn't know how to begin to unravel them.

"Yeah, grateful. Of course. That's how it feels. My bride could just as well be married to her damn job. Or her partner if she trusts him so much."

Merri let out a cynical laugh.

"Married to the job, huh? Now isn't that the pot calling the kettle black? Weren't you the one who walked away from our first engagement because of some assignment he couldn't afford to pass on?"

"Still lording that over me?"

"Just when it's fitting."

"I don't think it is. I made that mistake years ago and you are making one now."

He left her standing there in the kitchen as he stalked away.

"I'm going out. Don't wait up."

The door smashed closed behind her, leaving her too shocked to move.

888

Time sped by in a flurry. Three hard, time and energy consuming cases kept the small NCIS team occupied from early morning till very late in the evening. Her work and arranging wedding related things prevented Merri and Chris from having any kind of communication that wasn't case-related. Perhaps the frantic pace was for the best, since at the very least it didn't give them any time to dwell on uncertain feelings and shifting friendships.

James had come back the morning after their fight, with flowers and chocolates and a series of apologies that sounded hollow and insincere. Perhaps it would have been better to just call it quits, but with the big event just around the corner, both their stubborn streaks prevailed over what their hearts had known all along. And so they kissed and made up and pretended it was just one more hurdle they had successfully smoothed over.

Before either one of them was well aware, there was only a week to go before the wedding would take place. Merri had given out invitations to Linda, Laurel, Loretta, Sonja (and Abigail Borin when she showed up for a case; or just to see King; as Chris teased his friend) for a hens party later that week at Loretta's place and Chris, Pride, Patton and Sebastian had received a stag party invitation from James, who had done so more out of courtesy to his bride than anything else, knowing he'd better make friends with the people she worked with, including her hated partner. Pride had offered his bar as a location, since James didn't know the city that well yet.

Both parties were held that evening. Chris wasn't planning to go. He knew Pride would make an appearance out of courtesy (and well, it was his bar; so it would only be logical) and that Patton would probably be there too just because he liked a good party, but Chris was not a masochist. He'd had his share of self-mutilation when he had wanted to scratch his eyeballs out after his and Merri's visit to Viv. He wouldn't torture himself even more by forcing himself to interact with the groom, who wasn't very fond of him either.

There was the wedding to get through as well, which would take all of his energy and self-control. Only his love for his partner and his respect for her decision would prevent him from standing up in the middle of the small ceremony and object. He would hold his peace, bite his tongue to a bleeding pulp if this…sad mistake was what she thought would make her happy.

Oh yes, he knew he loved her. He wasn't that stupid. It might have taken him a while (and a drunken conversation with Loretta and King) to admit it out loud, but he had always known.

God, he still felt chills when he thought about that evening, a few nights ago, when he found the invitation on his desk. He'd lingered at the office long enough for King to recognize his need for a man-to-man conversation and had gladly accepted the offer of staying for dinner. He'd opened his first beer as his boss, mentor and surrogate father figure assembled his pots and pans. When the gentle pathologist had wandered in, an extra place was set without question. Two hours, a full plate of jambalaya, four beers and half a bottle of wine later, Chris was tipsy and morose enough to open up, both King and Loretta listening to his drunken rant.

" _She's making a huge mistake."_

" _It's her life, Christopher. We're her friends. We should be happy for her. Support her."_

" _How can I support her when I think she's being all kinds of stupid?! He doesn't love her, she doesn't love him, she deserves better, someone who truly loves her."_

Someone who truly loves her…that was the big ass whooping moment, kicking him with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer, leaving him quite winded and suddenly nauseous (although that could have been the alcohol too).

" _Someone like me, damn it! I love her. Good God, help me, I'm in love with Merri freaking Brody-soon-to-be-Lathom!"_

He'd started crying then, big crocodile tears, unfiltered by his alcohol impaired brain. What was he supposed to do now? Why hadn't he realized the danger of the flirtatious games he was playing with her? When did he allow himself to get in too deep?

He'd almost handed in his resignation then and there, but his boss and friend was sober enough to ignore the offered badge and gun and escort the drunken agent to a bed in his guest room upstairs. When LaSalle had woken up the next morning, groggy and disoriented, there was a glass of water, a glass of orange juice and two aspirin on his bedside table, together with a note to inform him that Pride and Brody were chasing down some leads and wouldn't be in till lunch time. He was ordered to take his time, take a shower, get some breakfast and go see what Patton was up to with their latest suspect's laptop.

None of them mentioned his confession again, but when he had asked Pride to convey his excuses to the groom, the older man had merely nodded, putting his hand on his junior agent's uninjured shoulder.

"I'll tell him not to expect you, but Christopher, what are you going to do about the wedding itself?"

"Dunno. I…do you think Merri would be very upset if I didn't show up?"

"Maybe. She is your partner and friend, Christopher and this is a very important day to her. But I'd understand if some emergency would come up…"

Chris gave a wan smile, acknowledging his friend's offer of a way out, one he might want to consider if only running wouldn't have felt like cowardice.

That evening, when all intended attendees had left, Chris found himself lumbering aimlessly through the empty office, looking at Merri's desk, which would remain empty for the next three weeks as she and James were leaving for their Honeymoon immediately after the wedding reception. He felt depressed and lonely, but knew better than to start drinking again, knowing it wouldn't end well when there was nobody around to save him from doing anything stupid.

A white card sticking out from between a stack of paperwork on his partner's desk caught his attention and he carefully plucked it out. It was an invitation to her hen's party.

Before he could talk himself out of it, Chris grabbed his gun, badge, phone and car keys and got on his way.

888

She was actually having a good time. Her guests had guessed correctly that Merri was not your average bride-to-be and wasn't into any game playing or being dressed up like a fool (she saved that for Mardi Gras and Halloween), nor any male strippers for that matter. So they just sat in Loretta's cozy living room and ate and drank and told stories. Just a relaxed time between women who might not have been friends from the start, but who did like each other's company for a few hours.

At one moment, Loretta's doorbell rang. Since they were still expecting some more food they had ordered in, she excused herself and stood from their table. When she came back, her face looked a little worried as she approached the bride to be.

"Merri, you might want to handle this outside."

Curious and a little concerned, Merri followed her friend and coworker outside the house, only to see her partner standing there; looking like a little boy lost, with his hands stuffed deep in his pockets and his eyes looking anywhere but directly at her. Immediately, she thought about Cade, hoping the other LaSalle brother hadn't slipped and messed up again. Of course, if he had, she would be there for Chris, help him in any way she could, even if this was a busy week with her wedding just around the corner.

"Chris, are you okay? Is there something wrong? Cade? Pride? Wait, weren't you supposed to be at James's stag party? Are they alright? Did anything happen?"

Chris shook his head mid-ramble.

"No, no, they're all fine. I just…I didn't want to go. I eh…God this is hard."

He wiped his face in a nervous gesture, before trying again.

"Merri, can you listen for just a few minutes? I know you're having a party over there and I won't keep you long, but…just a few minutes? Please?"

Merri nodded, leading him a little away from the house to a more secluded corner of Loretta's front terrace, where two deckchairs stood and where they could speak more quietly; out of sight and earshot of the other women inside. With a heavy sigh, Chris sat down and gestured for Merri to do the same. Sensing his need for comfort, she put her hand on his and squeezed it gently.

"Talk to me Chris."

"I eh…would you eh…would you be very disappointed if I won't make it to your wedding?"

Taken aback by the unexpected question, Merri gasped. Why wouldn't he want to come? Unless…

"Why wouldn't you come? Is there something wrong? Is it Cade? Is he in any kind of trouble? Because if he is, we should…"

Her voice trailed off, unsure how to proceed. They should what? Postpone the wedding? Run off mid-vow? Where was she going with this? Better yet, where was he?

"No, no, nothing like that. He's fine. But I'm just…"

He stopped again, shaking his head and taking a big gulp of air. When he opened his mouth again, he seemed to have changed his mind.

"You know what? Never mind. I shouldn't have come, it's unfair to bother you with my issues. It's…it's none of your concern and I shouldn't spoil your evening any further. I eh…I'm sorry I can't make it to the wedding. I hope you have a great day."

He stood up from his chair, hesitated for one moment, not daring to look at her, before turning away and stalking off. A few yards away, he suddenly stood stock still, let out a sound that was stuck between whimper and groan, turned around again, came right at her and pulled her in his arms with a desperate force. He was shaking from head to toe, but his hand was gentle when he cupped her face and placed his lips on her own.

And she responded. Heaven help her, but she opened her lips to him, clung to him, granted him access to her mouth, which he greedily accepted. It felt so good, so right, so warm.

So wrong. Oh God, what was she doing?! She ended the kiss abruptly and wriggled free from his grasp, panting hard. Chris did nothing to stop her, struggling to catch his own breath, hands falling limp and useless by his sides and eyes cast downwards, not daring to look her in the eyes and see the destruction his selfish act of despair had caused.

His voice was nothing but a whisper, holding no apology, but a world of regret.

"Be happy, sweet Merri."

Merri stood, frozen in shock as realization and understanding hit her. By the time she could get her befuddled mind out of its haze in order to tell her body to walk, speak, do anything really, he was already in his truck, taillights disappearing fast in the distance.

Christopher LaSalle. Her partner and friend. Who loved her.

Whom she loved.

Oh. Shit.

 _Oooh, cliffhanger! Don't worry, I'll update soon. In the meantime, I thank you again for reading and I'd really love to hear from you. Thanks a lot!_


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N** : OK, I must admit, I took some creative liberties with the timeline here. I know normally planning a wedding could take up an entire year, but since this is my interpretation of Merri trying to remain stoic and practical, the wedding is set around the end of May. Short period, since the proposal was on Valentine's Day, but who cares, right? It's my story and I say it can be done.

 **A/N II:** Thanks to all who reviewed or put this story on their alert list. Special thanks to Marjorie K. Place and JerichoSteele, for their encouraging comments. Their stories are phenomenal and I recommend them to all.

 **Disclaimer** : All characters are owned by CBS, of which I am not a part.

How she managed it; she would never know, but when she came back in; her mask was on firmly and Merri didn't think any of the other women noticed the turmoil in her heart and mind, caused by the man who had just walked out on her, though she thought she saw Loretta glancing at her with concern in her eyes. She avoided being alone with the woman for the rest of the evening.

She'd been so sure, hadn't she? That this wedding, this commitment was what she wanted? That James was the one she wanted it with? That she had made more than a rash decision when she accepted his proposal?

Yes, of course it was the right thing to do! She'd ben over this before and the conclusion was still the same. She did want this, she deserved this. James was a great man and they would have a happy marriage. He would not walk out on her again. That was years ago, when neither one of them was ready. But they were now.

And no, it had nothing, nothing whatsoever to do with her mother's pressure and her own mounting fear of being left out and becoming some old spinster. Neither was this admittedly fast track in any way related to the idea that, according to some, she was way past the years where casual dates and no-strings-attached romps in the bedroom were still appropriate behavior.

Meredith Brody was just ready to grow up and settle down and James Lathom was the right man to settle down with.

So what did it matter that he didn't make her heart soar? That seeing him standing on her doorstep on Valentine's Day hadn't automatically sent any butterflies twirling through her stomach? That sex with him was satisfactory but not the melting of souls she had once believed it should be? She'd just read too many cheesy romance novels in her teens and had stopped believing in this romantic nonsense long time ago.

Chris LaSalle, damn the man to hell, would not defer her course, would not distract her from her plan of action. He may think he was in love with her, but she knew him all too well. He was a player and an incurable flirt. That easygoing lopsided smile of his, combined with his Southern chivalry and his charming (if somewhat thickset) drawl, could lure the most level-headed women straight into his trap. Not that she thought he was overly promiscuous (she knew about his plethora of one-night-stands after Savannah had died; but regarded it as nothing more than a phase in his grieving process), but more that he just couldn't help himself, grieving or not. The man was so incredibly comfortable with women, it was easy for both himself and any lady he encountered to be tricked into believing there was something more going on than superficial infatuation.

Besides, how could this, admittedly, beautiful, special man ever really be in love with her? She wasn't in any way modest or shy, but she did recognize and would not deny their differences in both age as well as upbringing. No matter how she looked at it and despite of the fact they did get along very well, she couldn't help but conclude that, as far as romantic relationships went, she and Chris weren't the most compatible people. And he had to see that too.

So yeah. A temporary infatuation on his side. That's all it was, she was sure of it. Had to be. He was just projecting, having a knee-jerk reaction to the eminent and inevitable shift in their partnership.

And she wouldn't dwell on what it was for her. Chris never meant that much to her. She was just confused by the sweetness of his kiss, combined with the nerves for her wedding and the wine she had drunk. So no more of that for her. It made her feel things that weren't real.

James was real. Her marriage was real. That's what mattered.

Her mind firmly made up, she said goodbye to her friends and walked the few yards back to her home.

The fact she was relieved James wasn't there yet meant nothing. The fact she didn't text him to ask him when he would return meant nothing.

And the fact she pretended to sleep when he did come in and he did nothing to reach out to her as he slipped beneath the covers, meant nothing.

 **888**

He'd made a pact with King. Reinforcements were coming from the DC office to fill in for Merri and Dwayne Pride had officially sent Chris on medical leave, his harmless shoulder injury of weeks before suddenly turning out to be a fracture after all. Funny how that happened.

In fact, Chris decided he needed solitude. Normally, when he was in a dark mood, he sought out the busiest places he could think of, if only not to hear his own mulling thoughts, but this time, he felt suffocated and the thought of even one person trying to cheer him up (whether male or female and regardless of what they were offering) made his skin crawl.

For now, he was better off alone. At his friend's offer, he'd be residing in one of the empty safe houses, one close to some excellent fishing spots. Nobody would know where he was except for his boss, who promised not to contact him unless there was some kind of emergency. The safe house had no land line and was in the depths of the bayou, where it wasn't easily located. If you didn't know it was there, you'd miss it.

It was exactly what he needed.

He hadn't seen or spoken to Merri since the evening of her party and was told by Pride that, though she regretted his absence on the most important day of her life so far, she understood.

That was all.

At least Pride didn't know about the kiss. Chris hadn't told him about it and he was pretty certain Merri hadn't mentioned it either. Chris knew that his mentor and friend would never get in his face about it, but neither would he have been very happy. Well, that made two of them.

He shouldn't have done it. Should have just kept on walking, but the overwhelming knowledge that this would be his very last chance to steal at least one second of her sweet lips for himself, before she was forever off limits, had taken over his senses as well as his normal chivalry.

Though that was not the main reason he should have been stronger. Rather it was the suspicion and then the confirmation that she was actually susceptible to his advances. That she would kiss him back, for longer than she could blame on being taken by surprise. And dear God, what a kiss it had been. Agonizingly sweet. Agonizingly bitter too.

He could never un-taste her. He had made his bed and now he had to lie in it.

So he packed some of his stuff in his truck and left the city behind him, feeling a sad kind of calmness settle over him as he reached the highway, leaving it after a few miles to navigate through ever narrowing back roads and dust paths. Leaving the radio off, he let his thoughts wander.

There was nothing he could (or should) do about his current situation. But, as with everything in his life, he would find a way to deal with it. Unbeknown to King and anyone else, he'd had a talk with his former NOPD boss. If ever he needed to get away from NCIS, a job was waiting for him at his old precinct. It would probably mean a pay cut, but Chris was never a high maintenance man and he would gladly take it if somehow working with his married partner didn't work out.

At least he had some kind of exit strategy.

He reached his destination, took his stuff from the trunk and closed off his truck. Inside the wooden cabin, after a quick inspection (one never knew what was left behind by whoever stayed here last), he deemed the place safe and stuffed the food he brought in the fridge in the small kitchen. With not much to do and evening setting in pretty fast, casting the house in darkness by total lack of street lights, Chris went to bed early, exhausted from all the conflicting emotions of the past few days, weeks and even months since Merri's announcement. He never stopped to check any of his calls and didn't bother with either TV (without cable, there wasn't much on), radio or Internet. His mail went unchecked.

On the day of Merri's wedding, he woke up early and made himself some breakfast before picking up his fishing utensils and a cool box filled with bait and supplies. His phone he left on the breakfast table. For one day, Chris LaSalle would shirk his duties and be off the grid. On this particular day, the city of New Orleans would just have to save itself. There was a small boat tethered to a rundown dock behind the cabin and after checking the motor and finding it in good working order, he carefully put his stuff in and set the boat in motion, turning it toward an even more closed off part of the waters, until there wasn't as much as a hint of human life around him.

Here, he expertly hooked his bait and swung out his fishing rods. Then it was time for some snacks. And a cold beer, of course.

An hour or so passed and though he tried to enjoy his peaceful surroundings, he wished he could somehow concentrate more on them, so he wouldn't keep seeing these images in his head.

How pretty she looked walking down the aisle.  
How James would look at her with the same awe in his eyes he must have had when he saw her coming out of that dressing room.  
How they would exchange vows. Had they written them themselves; a testimony of their love?  
How James would take her hand and place the ring on her finger.  
How he would kiss her for the first time as husband and wife, not knowing his nemesis had tasted the same lips.

He glanced at his watch. The ceremony must be over by now, their reception with their friends in full blast.

Would she miss him? Would she think of him? Their kiss? Did she hate him for it? Did she hate herself for giving in or did she chalk it up as some drunken indiscretion on her part, something akin to fondling a stripper?

Really, when it came down to it; what was he to her?

A partner. A friend. Someone she liked and trusted. Someone she may be attracted to, but would never love or consider life partner material.

Forever just a work partner. And he had no choice but to accept it, if he wanted to stay with NCIS. Which he wasn't quite sure he did anymore.

For so long; it had been the focal point of his life, the culmination of everything he had worked to achieve. He and King, they had something great going on. When Merri had joined, he'd had his reservations, not knowing quite well what to expect from the stoic and rather detached looking woman who was assigned to help them temporarily.

But then she stayed and she gradually adjusted to their way of working. Starting to like it. To trust them. To trust him. And they learned to trust and value her.

Why couldn't it have stayed that way? God help him; why did he have to develop deeper feelings for her, only to have her being taken away from him? Just like Savannah. Okay, so Merri wasn't dead, but she was out of his reach as much as his late girlfriend was. Only this time, he would have to bear witness of her life from a distance and no matter how sad he'd been when Savannah had passed, somehow this was worse.

Much, much worse.

When he came back later that afternoon, he was cold and wet and cranky because not long after his mood, the weather had suddenly turned on him too and he never had a chance to catch much. He had thrown back the little ones he had managed to catch, they weren't worth the trouble of preparation. To make matters worse; the little motor had died on him, falling victim to the torrent of rain no doubt. Luckily, there were peddles too and Chris has resigned himself to the task at hand, which did nothing good for his aching, supposedly broken shoulder.

The hot shower helped to take some of the ache away and; dressed in dry jogging pants and long-sleeved t-shirt, he felt marginally better. He grabbed another cold beer from the fridge, made a sandwich to eat (it was easiest and he wasn't particularly hungry anyway; wryly thinking of the elaborate dinner Mr. and Mrs. Brody-Lathom and guests were having at that very moment) and sat on the rickety rocking bench on the porch, watching as the weather cleared and the stars and moon took center stage.

Inevitably, it got too cold to stay outdoors any longer, so Chris went back inside and, headed straight for the bedroom without taking his phone with him. He'd figured he wouldn't be able to fall asleep quickly, but as by some miracle, he was out like a light, the exhaustion and the sleepless nights of the last few days finally having caught up with him. Only the morning after, out of a sudden sense of guilt, he grabbed the small device from the breakfast table where he had left it the day before and switched it on. He took a glance at the small screen.

And spat out his coffee at the missed calls and texts it displayed.

King had called half a dozen times and left as many messages; his tone of voice increasingly worried as he kept imploring Chris to call back as soon as he got the message. Loretta had called him too. And a number he recognized as Pride's bar.

What had happened? Were they okay? Had there been some kind of attack? Had they missed the signs? Doing what they did, they were not without vengeful enemies and there had been an NOPD security team made available to make sure this party would not be interrupted by some bad guys thinking a wedding attended by so many law enforcement officers was a golden opportunity. But no security detail was ever fool proof and sadly not every bad guy was a dumb guy.

What if something had happened? What if his friends had gotten hurt?

OH God, what if it was Merri? A sudden vision of the woman he loved lying on the floor as her blood stained her pretty ivory dress red took shape in his head and he almost chocked in shock. Something must have happened. And he hadn't been there to protect her. He would never forgive himself if he, again, had lost a woman he loved because he failed her.

With trembling hands, he selected King's number and swiped to connect.

It rang out. Frustrated and very concerned now, he tried Loretta's number next. It too went to voicemail after a few dial tones.

What the heck had happened? He tried Sebastian, Patton, even Laurel and got their voicemails instead. Not bothering with leaving a message; he called his former NOPD boss instead. At least the last one picked up, but other than the message that he hadn't attended any wedding the day before and wasn't aware who was on the security detail, there wasn't much he could tell. At least no major crisis had happened, or he would have heard about it. He promised Chris he would get back to him if he learned more.

Desperate now, he finally swallowed his last bit of self-pity and called Merri.

It went straight to voicemail. Which wasn't surprising, but not very helpful either.

Just as he was about to try King's cell again, he heard a car door slam in front of the house. Drawing his gun on instinct (this was supposed to be a safe house after all), Chris carefully made his way to the front door, kicking it open and aiming his weapon, only to come face to face with the very same man he was about to contact.

Dwayne Pride looked tired. He also seemed haggard and angry, an anger Chris wasn't sure who it was directed to. Stuffing his weapon back in the waistband of his jeans, he addressed his friend and boss, hoping for answers, but dreading them all the same, the look on King's face not doing anything to calm down the anxious beating of his heart.

Please, let them all be okay. Let Merri be okay. He could handle her being married. He didn't know how he would handle her being dead.

"King, what the hell happened? A dozen missed calls? Is everything alright? Merri? Please, tell me she's okay."

The older man clasped his shoulder, then retreated with an apology as the younger man winced. Sure, his injury may have been exaggerated to excuse his absence, that didn't mean it was completely healed either.

"Merri's fine Chris. Physically at least. But there was no wedding. Merri needs you. I'll explain on the way home."

"Gimme a sec."

Without giving it any second thought, Chris went back inside, leaving Pride standing on the front porch. He grabbed his bag, stuffed everything he'd brought with him in it, not caring a flying fig about the condition of his clothing or toiletries and followed his boss and friend out the door. Pride had already opened his own truck and Chris put his bags in the trunk.

"We'll pick up your truck later. Right now, I'd rather have you drive with me. The roads are pretty traitorous after last yesterday's rain."

Chris merely nodded. Being as riled up as he was, it was probably better of he didn't get behind a wheel of a car anyway. Still, it wasn't before they were on the highway going back to the city that King spoke up.

"James left her, Chris. Again."

 _So…what happened? Stay tuned for my next installment. Please, let me know you're still with me. Love your comments, always. Thank you!_


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** Well here we go: the wedding day. The day where Merri and James were supposed to say their 'I do's'…what happened instead?

 **Disclaimer** : Introducing a few new characters, which are mine. All other characters you recognize are owned by CBS, of which I am not a part.

New Orleans surely showed herself at het very best on the morning of Merri's wedding. She woke up in Loretta's house; in Danny's room, who had bunked with his younger brother so Merri could uphold the tradition of not spending the evening before the wedding with her fiancé. Her friend and landlord had helped her carefully bring over her dress and accessories and one of Laurel's friends who was a good make-up artist would come in to help her with her hair and make-up.

Since Chris had left; she had tried and almost succeeded in wiping his never uttered, but still very loudly heard confession and subsequent kiss from her mind. In a few hours' time, she would exchange vows with the man she loved. Because of course she loved James and she had been a fool to let her plans get thwarted by her work partner.

Sharing breakfast with Loretta's makeshift family, she glanced outside and breathed in deeply. It was going to be a lovely day.

After breakfast she allowed herself to go with the flow as a flurry of activities went about around her. Betty, the make-up artist arrived with Laurel and together they morphed the stern NCIS Special Agent Meredith Brody into a bride.

The dress was praised by all (she did NOT picture his wide blue eyes when he had seen her emerge from the dressing room) and with all the "trimmings" done (a simple set of gold necklace and earrings and some baby's breath pined in her hair), she looked radiant. Understated, but classy. A little nervous maybe, but what bride wasn't, really?

They ceremony was to be held in the backyard of a small chapel she had come across one time on an investigation. Neither she nor James was overly religious, but the location was perfect in every way. The reception was to be held there as well, with Pride's café only a two blocks away as a back-up plan in case the weather would take a nasty turn.

Sitting in the back seat of Loretta's car, Merri tried to keep the jitters down; chalking them up as normal wedding day nerves and not as small twinges of doubt upsetting her stomach.

When they arrived, Pride, Sebastian and Patton were waiting for her; along with Sonja, Abigail Borin and both Linda and Laurel. All immaculately dressed in their finest suits and dresses. A smile broke out on her face. She was so happy to have her New Orleans family be there for her. No, she would not dwell on the glaringly absent partner in their midst. Much to her pleasant surprise, she noticed Gibbs, DiNozzo and Abby Sciutto between the crowds. She did send invitations to the DC office, but hadn't been sure any of them would be able to make it.

Some people she didn't know too well were waiting for her arrival too, but Merri figured they must be friends of James she hadn't met yet. With all his travelling, he was bound to have friends all over the globe.

Speaking of which, where was her groom?

As Pride gallantly helped her out of her car, giving her an appreciative glance, the confusion must have been visible on her face.

"We haven't seen him yet. But no worries, maybe he's stuck in traffic somewhere. Could be anything, really."

"Yeah, I guess."

It didn't sound at all convincing, but what else was there to say? Of course there was a reason to believe he would have fled the scene. After all; he'd done it before. But it had been months since the proposal and weeks since they had last argued and he hadn't shown any signs of real panic so far. Unlike herself, she ironically thought.

Greeting her guests preoccupied her for a while, but when there were only ten minutes left before the ceremony was supposed to begin panic was rising.

This couldn't be happening. Could it?

Then, much to her relief, she saw his car pull up. Her groom stepped out.

And Merri's heart sank.

She knew James was never a sucker for big ceremonies, but if this was his version of a suit; it was odd to say the least. Jeans, shirt, jacket and dusty boots were not usual wedding attire, not even for someone who made a point of being understated. At least Merri's version of understated was still tasteful.

He'd better come up with a brilliant excuse in the next five minutes or there would be hell to pay.

Ignoring the stares and whispers all around him, he jogged over to his bride.

"Merri, may I have a word please?"

"What the hell, James, we're supposed to get married in five minutes! What's happening? Dry-cleaners lost your suit or something?"

His face fell and for one second, Merri feared something real bad had happened. She felt him tug at her arm, trying to get her away from her coworkers whom she'd been chatting with. She only managed to turn to Pride.

"Can you please…?"

"Leave your guests to me. I'll handle it. You go talk to James."

Merri nodded in gratitude, quite impressed with the way her boss reigned in his obvious anger toward the supposed groom. For the first time, she was happy, for James's sake, Chris wasn't there. He would have torn the other man in very small pieces for the blatant display of disrespect he was showing his bride and their guests.

Leading her away from the small crowd, James sat down on a bench and made room for Merri to join him. She refused. The bench was dirty and she didn't want her so far immaculate dress to get smudged by a mixture of decades old dirt, sand, tree sap and bird poop. She had a strong suspicion she would have to return it. Plus, she was way too agitated to sit down and listen to whatever excuse he would come up with to leave her this time.

Taking one deep breath, Merri went into interrogation mode; the only way she could prevent herself for wringing his neck with her bare hands.

"Talk to me James. Why am I not walking down the aisle right this very minute? Why aren't you dressed like a groom? And what the hell is so important it couldn't wait until after the wedding? Do you even remember the wedding, that little shindig that had me dressing up like this?"

Instead of answering, James took an envelope out of his jacket pocket and pulled out some photos, handing them to her. She scanned them through. They were made in what looked like a refugee camp. A small infant featured in most of them, held by a pretty young woman wearing a 'Doctors Without Borders' jacket and a stethoscope around her slender neck. Merri still didn't quite get what it had to do with their current situation. Handing them back, she turned her questioning eyes to him.

"Cute kid."

"Yeah, he is."

James rubbed his face in an agitated gesture.

"He's eh…he's mine."

"What do you mean, yours?"

"You know what I mean, Merri. That's my kid. My son. The woman in the picture, her name is Lucy. She's a doctor. I met her two years ago at a refugee camp in Syria. I was writing a series of articles. She worked there. We started talking one night and eh…well…you know. We had an affair. Anyway, she never told me she got pregnant. I had to leave for another assignment and I never saw her again. I thought she must have forgotten about me since she never wrote. Turns out she did; but I guess the mail isn't too reliable in a war zone. Her first letters informed me of her pregnancy and later she tried to send me pictures of him; the ones you're holding now, but none of her letters found me until a couple of days ago, via my agent. He gave them to me on my bachelor party. The pictures are at least eight months old. Which means that my son is now almost a year old. And I didn't even know about him until now."

Merri was stunned. She didn't know what to say. She couldn't fault James for having an affair or relationship or whatever he wanted to call it and neither could she blame him for not telling her anything about this since he didn't know himself. Although…

"You had a week to tell me. Why did you wait until now?"

"Because, right until this morning I convinced myself I would never have to tell you at all. That I could marry you as planned, throw away the pictures and pretend I didn't know. I just…I can't do that. I know I can be a bastard, but I can't willingly and knowingly turn my back on them. But you deserve to know. This is as much your decision as mine. What to do next, I mean…"

Merri blew out the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. It was a lot to take in and she didn't really know what the next step should be. If they did go ahead with the marriage it would mean she was a stepmom, even if she might never meet the child. Unless…

"What do you want to do, James? Bring the child over here? With his mom? Provide for them?"

"I don't know!"

"His mom, is she an American? Are they in the country now?"

He shook his head.

"She's South African. I tracked her down. She's in Johannesburg."

Silence settled as they both tried to deal with the situation at hand. Then, with a tinge of pain in her voice, Merri asked him:

"Did you love her? Do you still?"

"Yes, I loved her. I don't know if I still do."

Then, sounding more resolved than she felt, she told him:

"You should go to her. Go and find out. Get to know your child. See if you can restore your relationship."

"But…what about us Merri?"

She shook her head in a resigned way.

"Well, obviously we can't get married now. It wouldn't be fair to either one of us, nor to Lucy and…what's your boy's name?"

"Nigel."

"Nigel. He needs a daddy. He has a daddy. For his sake, go to Johannesburg."

James stood, letting out a sigh of relief he'd obviously been holding.

"I guess you're right. But I want you to know how sorry I am. I never meant for any of this to happen and especially not now. You deserve so much more."

"I know. I…I'm not happy with this and I guess I can't blame you, but, well, it is what it is."

She turned to the spot a hundred yards away, where their guests tried to discreetly look the other way. All of their friends. All there for nothing. How to tell them the wedding was off? How to cancel an event like this?

James followed her gaze.

"Let me go inform them. You can stay here if you want, let me take the flak I deserve."

She nodded silently. Normally, she would have insisted on staying strong and handling this herself, but for once, she just didn't feel up to it. Besides, she thought with a little devilish voice; let him indeed take the flak. Why did she have to be the one to play nice when he was the one leaving her at the proverbial altar?

She watched from a distance as he gathered their friends and told them the party was over. Some of them left shortly after, others, like her team and DC coworkers lagged behind, watching as James returned to her side.

"So, no lynch mob?"

He managed a wry grin.

"Apparently not. They let me get away with it; though I think it's best if I left the crime scene, right? Before they decide to come after me with torches and pitchforks. Or voodoo priests."

"Yeah, I think so too."

He stood and hugged her awkwardly.

"You'll never know how sorry I am for hurting you."

Merri shrugged. It really didn't matter one way or the other.

"It's okay. I got my friends. My own little family. I'll survive."

"Good, that's good. I eh…I'll keep you posted. If you'd like me to, that is."

"I think I would appreciate a note every now and then. Just to know you're still alive."

"You're a great gal, Merri. I hope you find the real man for you someday."

The image of her partner flashed through her mind, but now was not the time to contemplate him as a potential date, let alone her 'real man', so she focused on her ex fiancé again. Speaking of which…

Merri pulled the engagement ring off her finger and handed it to James.

"You might want to take this back."

James shook his head.

"Keep it. It's yours."

"What, and start a collection?"

He winced. "Ouch. But deserved I guess."

He refused to take the ring back though.

"Keep it, sell it, do some good with it. All up to you."

With nothing else left to say, he walked away from her, turning one more time.

"Be happy, sweet Merri."

She nodded, again trying not to think of Chris and how he uttered the exact same words before he too left.

Story of her life.

She felt numb. Like she was in some kind of psychedelic dream, where all visions were blurred and sounds muffled.

From within the haze, she watched a sole figure come toward her. And exhaled when she recognized Pride. Being the gentleman he was and not caring about the state of his clothing, he pulled off his tuxedo jacket and draped it across the bench so the suddenly exhausted no-longer-bride could sit down. Gratefully, she sagged on the spot recently vacated by her twice-over ex-fiancé.

"All guests have left except for our family. I got Gibbs, Tony and Abby dealing with the caterers and such. There's a homeless shelter nearby. We figured the food could go there. If you agree."

Merri shrugged. It was fine with her. At least some people would have a really nice meal tonight for a change. Let them enjoy it.

"I figured we should go to the bar. I can make us all some coffee and we can…"

She shook her head, not in the mood for company, not wanting to be cheered up by anyone.

"I think I'm just gonna go home. Shower. Get out of this dress."

Unforeseen, the first tears came up, though she forced them back down, not wanting her boss to see them. She knew she would crumble when he would try to comfort her now. All she wanted was to let a nice hot shower wash away the remnants of the day and crawl into bed. A month or so would do nicely, she supposed. For a start.

"Sorry, Merri, but no can do."

"I'll be fine."

"I don't doubt that. But we're your friends. You can't keep us out of this. You don't have to unravel your soul to us, but we do want you to witness with your very own eyes that we got your back no matter what happens."

"You're not going to drop this are you?"

He grinned at her, seemingly happy he had gotten through to her.

"Not a chance."

"Ok, compromise. I'll let Loretta drive me home to shower and change and we'll meet you guys later at the bar."

"Sounds like a plan to me."

888

An hour later, Loretta and Merri, now dressed in a pair of yoga pants, a shirt and a hoodie, met with their coworkers at Pride's bar. There was no sign of any bridal decorations as the team had done a quick clean-up before she came in.

A cup of coffee was placed in front of her (Irish; Pride warned her before she took a sip) and for a few moments, the people in their little group just sat and drank. Merri had to agree it was a better alternative than crawling like a mole under her covers and cry herself to sleep.

Since the weather had decided to play along with her change of mood (not quite a storm but more like a constant dreary rain), they stayed indoors and talked. Merri had decided to just be honest with all of them and told them about a doctor called Lucy who had given birth to a baby boy Nigel, who was James's son.

Though they all praised her for staying so level-headed, inside Merri felt anything but. The fact she was downing quite a few glasses of wine didn't make the situation any easier. Tipsy Merri was a merry Merri. Drunk Merri was morose Merri. Drunk and abandoned (again) by her fiancé Merri was soon a very sad pile of slobber.

As their guests dispersed one by one, saying their goodbyes, Loretta glanced at Pride and after locking up the bar, they took their blubbering agent to the Medical Examiner's car and then home.

Loretta stayed the night, helping the poor thwarted bride when she unavoidably got sick and making sure she got into a clean bed where she eventually fell into an uneasy sleep.

 _Next up: St. Christopher to the rescue! Stay tuned. Oh...and drop me a review, if you want. Thanks!_


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** Has the time finally come for Chris and Merri to become closer? Read and find out!

 **Disclaimer** : All characters in this chapter are borrowed from CBS, with one exception.

"Step on it, King!"

"Look, son, I know you're anxious to see her, but I won't risk causing an accident. Now stop fidgeting, you're making me nervous."

On their way home from the safe house, Dwayne had told Chris the entire story about Merri's broken engagement. As he had expected, Chris had reacted badly to the news. Anger had swept over his face; the expression was soon followed by one of extreme sadness as well as guilt.

Unrequited feelings or not, she was his friend and partner and he should have been there for her. But he had taken the coward's way out instead and had gone into hiding to lick his wounds in private.

When he dared mention this out loud to his friend and mentor, the older guy sadly shook his head.

"We all know that, had you seen this coming, you wouldn't have left her side. But Christopher, none of us had anticipated this, not even Merri herself. So don't put all the blame on your shoulders, son. It doesn't belong there. Now try to relax. We're almost there and Merri needs you to be her friend."

Chris nodded, swallowing hard. It wouldn't be easy to be her friend only, but for her sake, he would suppress all inappropriate thoughts and emotions coursing through him. He would give her the support she needed. Like the partner he was.

Nothing else was important now.

Five minutes later, they stopped in front of Merri's home.

"You ready, Christopher?"

"Yeah, I guess. Let's do this."

He was proud he had made it sound a lot more confident than he felt. Until he saw Dwayne Pride's face and knew the man wasn't fooled for a minute.

Damn. Here was hoping that Merri would be less alert.

888

The first thing Merri had done when she woke up groggy, with a headache and a cotton mouth was throw off her clothes and stand under the warm spray of her shower, leaving the door slightly ajar at her friend's insistence, since she was, admittedly, quite hungover and dizzy.

After her refreshing shower, she dressed in her warmest, softest yoga pants, hoodie and sport socks. Loretta had already made coffee and some plain crackers; knowing a hungover stomach wouldn't do well on pancakes or waffles. When Merri called Pride, he told her he had put her on medical leave for her emotional distress. Since she was supposed to be on her honeymoon anyway, her absence was covered, so she could have all the time she needed to herself to recover, even though she said she'd much rather go back to work. Hibernation may sound like a good idea, but staying bust was a lot healthier and a lot more plausible for a human being.

Loretta had to go back to work after breakfast, leaving her with more coffee, some aspirin and another plate of plain crackers. Sebastian dropped by during his break (or so he said), looking all out of his element with a bunch of daisies in one hand and a selection of movies on an external hard drive, telling her she was welcome to borrow it as long as she wanted to. He even connected the device to her TV and taught her to set it all up. She smiled when he hugged her, stammering as he did so. For all his social awkwardness, he was really a sweetheart.

He left with the promise to download more movies if she liked.

Without having anything better to do, she selected a movie she hadn't seen before and settled in.

When lunchtime came along, Merri forced some microwaved soup and crackers down her throat, trying not to think of the pictures of the luxury buffet at the five star resort in Hawaii where she was supposed to be spending her Honeymoon right now. After she managed to eat a bit, she put on another movie, falling asleep halfway through.

Two hours later, this was the way Chris and Pride found her when they let themselves in with the keys they had picked up from Loretta. Chris firmly bit his lower lip to the point of drawing blood to prevent a very un-masculine whimper from coming out. His poor Merri, looking so young and vulnerable, gripping the blanket draped over her like it was her life-line. God, James had better stay far, real far away from her, because if Chris would ever lay eyes on the guy again, he would kill him with his bare hands! Baby or no baby!

Dwayne put his hand on the younger man's shoulder and after they exchanged a quick look of understanding, their boss and friend silently left the room to give the younger partners some much-needed privacy.

Chris hardly noticed they were alone when he crouched down next to the sofa Merri was sleeping on and gave into the urge to touch her, gently pulling a loose curl from her forehead. It had taken him a while to get used to this more feminine haircut as opposed to the short pixie cut she had sported when he had first gotten to know her, which had suited her quite well in his opinion.

But hey, she could grow out her hair down to her butt (though that would obstruct a rather pleasant view) or shave her head bald for all he cared; she would still look lovely and kick some serious ass! Even when it now seemed like someone had kicked hers.

His movement must have disturbed her, because she stirred and a few seconds later, her eyes fluttered open. She blinked owlishly a few times but when her fogged up brain registered his presence, she gave him a groggy look and a sad little smile that melted the last vestiges of his heart.

"Hey LaSalle."

"Hey Brody."

"You're back."

"Yup."

"I didn't marry James."

"I know."

"How?"

"Loretta and King called me. Several times. Then King showed up to drag my sorry ass back to where I needed to have been all along."

Unable to control himself, he gently picked up the hand wandering over the blanket and kissed the back of it.

"I'm sorry, Merri, for being such a coward. I should have stuck around."

A little more awake now, Merri sat up. She patted the seat next to her and smiling a little, Chris sat down.

"Can you forgive me?"

"What's there to forgive, Chris? I understand why you left and there was nothing you could have done to prevent this drama from happening."

After some hesitation, she give him a shy look and added in a whisper:

"I owe you an apology too. I should have listened to you. You were trying to tell me all along that I was making a mistake and I just didn't want to believe it. And I hurt you; I know I did. And I'm so sorry for putting our friendship at stake."

Her bottom lip was wobbling severely by now as she realized what she had almost lost by insisting on the stupidity of her marriage which she knew was doomed from the moment James had gotten down on one knee and shown her the tackiest of all engagement rings; showing clearly how little he knew about her all along.

Before the first tear could complete its track from her eye down her cheek, it was caught by his thumb as he tenderly wiped it away.

"Come here, Sweet Merri."

She willingly succumbed to the overwhelming desire to be held by him, her hero, her very best friend, her protector. Saint Christopher, James had called him during their fight and she figured that, quite ironically, that must have been the only time he had actually been right about her so much more than just work partner.

Tears now flowing freely, Merri felt nonetheless a lot better just for being in his arms. He felt so warm, so safe. How could she have ever allowed herself to think that she would find this with someone else, anyone else?

Yet, she knew it wasn't that easy. Though finally admitting, at least to herself, that somewhere along the way she had fallen ass over teakettle in love with her partner, was a great step forward and even though she knew he felt quite the same way (oh that sweet, sweet kiss), she could not simply change boyfriends the way people changed their bedsheets. Both she and Chris deserved better, especially from each other.

They had baggage. Professional and personal. Chris had lost his girlfriend, she had lost her fiancé and while she was more angry than sad about the situation she was in, she would not simply turn this wonderful, valuable sweet man into a rebound-fuck. And she didn't need to be his either.

If she wanted to pursue a real relationship with him (and yes, she did), she needed to do it right. Starting with rebuilding their friendship, their trust in each other. Their easy banter which she had come to rely upon and which she had missed so much over the past few weeks as he had kept his distance from her.

They could build from there. Form a strong bond, one that was not just about the (undeniable) sexual attraction that had really been blossoming quite soon after she had become a part of their team and family.

"Fallen asleep again?"

His voice was teasing, but there was still an edge of worry tinging it.

"No, just thinking."

"Does it hurt?"

She pinched his side and he yelped.

"Play nice, you. And no, it doesn't hurt. For most people."

He grinned at her, happy that they could still spar and have fun despite of her current situation. For some reason, it gave him hope. Yet, when he saw she had put on her serious face again, he sobered up a little.

"What's on your pretty mind?"

"How do we move on from this?"

He let go of her, but couldn't bear the total loss of contact, so instead he put his hand on her knee in a friendly, none-intrusive manner, his thumb gently rubbing the fabric of her pants.

"Step by step, I guess. No pressure, no promises. We were friends, we are still friends and that's all that matters for now."

"For now?"

His serious face lit up with hope again and it was so freaking adorable, she couldn't help but put her smaller hand on his, still resting on her knee, silently encouraging him to finish his train of thoughts.

"Look, Merri, there's no point in playing games here. You know damn well I have feelings for you, but this is not the time or place to put any value in them. If there ever comes a moment where you think you might like to eh…go on a date…or…eh…well, whatever, with me, then…"

"Then you won't reject me?" Merri finished softly, completely enamored with her friend's unusual blustering. God, he was such a sweetheart!

"Definitely not."

He lifted their joined hands to his lips and kissed hers softly.

"Friends for now, Chris?"

"Absolutely."

"Wanna watch a movie with me?"

He smiled at her as she picked up the remote and snuggled against him, putting her head on his shoulder.

"Yeah, I'd like that. What are we watching?"

And even though she made him watch two incredibly stupid comedies, Chris was pretty happy just sitting there with her. It was quite normal to call in for some genuine Cajun comfort food when their stomachs started rumbling a little too loudly and he felt good carrying her to bed when she fell asleep with her head in his lap halfway through the second "Police Academy" sequel. He tucked her in and she smiled in her sleep when he kissed her forehead.

"Sweet dreams, Merri."

Yeah, they would be okay.

888

Two months later…

Forty. Really. There was no escaping it. Her calendar mercilessly reminded her that, indeed, she would reach the big 4-0 next Saturday. Merri didn't specifically dread it, knowing she was fitter than a lot of other women at that age and still looked younger than her years, but with all that had happened these past few months, she wasn't too keen on having too much attention drawn to it either. Though she knew her partner would not let it go by just like that.

Her partner. Her best friend, who had stoically remained in that particular zone ever since they agreed upon it two months back. Part of her was happy and grateful that they had gotten their shaken friendship back on track fairly easily, but a rapidly growing part of her was getting restless, because of the other promise he had made.

Maybe he still wasn't quite ready to make the next move, maybe he didn't think she was, but for whatever reason, all signs Merri had sent his way that, indeed, she wanted to move on, with him as more than her work partner, had missed their mark. They still went out to dinner and they still cooked for each other, or they would go out for a few drinks, but he always greeted her and left her with nothing more than a hug and a quick peck on her cheek or temple or forehead or another safe, platonic place.

Did he have second thoughts? Was his love waning now that she was available again? Or had he realized that he wasn't over Savannah yet? Or perhaps it was the fact she was a little over six years his senior and he didn't want to take a risk dating an older woman who was certainly no longer able to give him the 'basketball team of LaSalles' he said he wanted to have.

She had hinted at it a couple of times, but he hadn't taken the bait.

And it was frustrating to say the least.

What to do, what to do? She had exactly one week to come up with a plan, because she had set her birthday as an ultimatum for anything to happen. If it didn't then she would count her (severe) losses and try to move on, going as far as preparing herself mentally for another relocation, another flight from another inflicted wound.

But first, she thought with a wry sense of reality, she had some laundry to fold and put away and on this dreary Saturday morning, she reluctantly set herself to the task at hand.

She decidedly picked up a stack of towels and walked to the disaster area that was her linen closet. As she dropped the top towel, she bent over to pick it up from the bottom of the closet. Her hand touched a cardboard box and she retracted it as if bitten.

Her wedding dress. Still folded neatly inside, out of sight, out of mind. She had made herself forget it was there. But now it was just like it was challenging her, mocking her for ever having the wish to wear it in the first place.

She picked up the box and put it on her bed, but couldn't make herself open it. For a few moments, she sat there, willing away the bad memories and concentrating on her breathing. Then a thought hit her. An idea formed in her mind.

Happy with the bonus excuse of leaving her teetering pile of laundry exactly where it was for another day (or week, more likely), she packed the box in her car, programmed her GPS and set out for a little road trip to Bama.

She found the small store easily and, box under her arm, stepped inside.

"Hello?"

From behind the familiar curtains, Viv appeared and smiled when she saw who her visitor/customer was. Merri warmly accepted the lady's hug.

"Come in, dearie. Let me look at you. You look good, though troubled. Tell Vivian what she can do for you."

Suddenly feeling like she was going to confession, Merri told the sweet lady all about the wedding that never was. Vivian just nodded and offered no opinion or sympathy, which Merri was secretly relieved about.

Only when Merri was done with her story, did she start asking questions, but only the appropriate ones, having noticed how her young guest had carefully avoided mentioning Christopher LaSalle at all. There was a story there, one she would find out, but not now. Not yet.

"So I assume it is your wedding dress in the box?"

Merri nodded.

"I know you probably can't give me my money back, and it's really not why I came, but I…Viv, can I be honest with you?"

"I should hope so, dear."

"I need your help. You see, I eh…I'm in love with this really great guy. I guess I was even before I got engaged to James, but we never dared to act on it and then we both put our feelings on hold after my botched wedding. But I think I'm ready to move on and I need to make him see."

Vivian was happy to have her back turned to the woman so she couldn't see the hopeful joy spreading across her face. If Merri's new beau was who she thought and hoped it was, she would be overjoyed. Not to mention right all along.

"Anyone I know?" Hopefully it came out casually, but when Viv turned, she saw that, for once, she had found her equal in seeing through people's bullshit. She appreciated Merri all the more for it.

"You know you do, Vivian. And it's okay to be happy with that, because so am I. I absolutely adore Chris. He just needs a little…"

"Nudge?" Vivian filled in for her and Merri laughed, nodding.

"Exactly."

"Well, I think I have exactly the encouragement you're looking for. Please wait here for a minute."

Merri heard her rummaging through the racks of clothes, heard a happy 'aha, there it is' and gasped when she came back.

"Is this what you had in mind?"

On the hanger she was holding up was a shiny silk dress that was similar to her wedding gown, only shorter, about knee level and instead of ivory, it was a lively cherry red. It looked promising. And red was definitely her color.

"Go try it on, dear."

This time, there was no hesitation. Again, the dress fit her like a glove and there was no sufficient description to how it made her feel. Elegant, sexy, happy.

If this would not attract the attention she was looking for, she didn't know what would. Laughing happily, she stepped out.

"I said nudge, Vivian, not shove the poor guy under a train!"

The older lady laughed along with her.

"God bless him, but subtlety has never been Chris's style. But I'm pretty sure this is a hint he won't miss."

Oh no, he wouldn't. Merri was sure of that. Remembering the glazed over look on his face when he had seen her in her wedding gown, she expected his eyes to fall straight out of their sockets when he would see her now. Oh heck, now she really couldn't wait for next Friday evening to come.

Now that she knew the 'good cause' Merri had come for, both women were quick to come to an agreement, which basically was a simple trade-off; one dress for another. Which was more than fair, considering Vivian would have to have the returned gown steam-cleaned and put on for sale as second-hand.

Packing the sexy red fabric in a new box, she made Merri make one promise though.

"Sweetheart, you had better come straight back to me for your second wedding dress. I am going to make that one for you myself."

"Don't jinx it, Viv. I have yet to get him to date me."

"Trust me, dear. You two will end up together. I knew it from the moment I saw you and I haven't been wrong yet."

She handed the box to Merri, who left the store with a flock of butterflies in her stomach and hope in her heart.

 _Will the little nudge pay off? Next chapter should tell you more. In the meantime, reviews make me very happy! Just a little nudge…_


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N** : For reasons which will become obvious at the end of this chapter, this is the last installment in the T-rating. From next chapter on, you'll find it in the M-section. Hope you'll follow me there.

 **Disclaimer** : None of the mentioned characters are mine.

She was up to something, he was sure of it. He knew her, his friend, his partner. And Meredith Brody was brooding on something, definitely hatching a plan. It irked and intrigued him that she didn't want to share even the smallest detail about it with him. Whenever he attempted to pry some information out of her, using all his skills as both an agent and a ladies man, she simply smiled impishly at him and told him to "just wait and see".

Oh, he knew he kind of deserved it. Their friendship hadn't progressed into anything more romantic and he knew that the blame for that was squarely on his shoulders. See, he was well aware of his reputation as a womanizer, whether totally deserved or not. He had always treated the women in his life with chivalry and courtesy, but he could not deny there had been quite a few and he had never been in a relationship for the long haul, though he had never lied to any of the women he picked up and had never led them on. Casual, consented sex was all he was in for.

Women as a species fascinated and intrigued him, but as soon as he had one of them figured out, he got bored, as most women he met were easier to decipher than he had originally thought. Perhaps it made him shallow, but when their secrets were revealed, he usually broke up with them or they with him. Savannah had been the first exception to this rule (but maybe that was only because she had been murdered before he could reopen their book) and Merri may be the second. He wanted her to be the last too.

But he had to be careful. She was the last person he would want to hurt and he wanted to be as certain of his next step as he could possibly be. This time, the commitment he made was meant to last. And while it excited him, it scared him a little too.

But with Merri planning the next move, he may have run clear out of time. Question was, was he ready?

Seeking advice from his best friend, Chris again invited himself over for dinner, something King never minded. Ladling his plate full of one of his friend's chicken and rice dishes, he ate in silence for a while, until Pride handed him another bottle of beer and simply said "talk".

Chris took a sip of the cool drink and started talking.

"Merri's getting antsy."

Dwayne Pride grinned. Like he hadn't noticed. His team members' silent dance around each other had long since grown old. What the heck were they waiting for? He appreciated taking things slow, as far as cooking went, but these two were pushing it.

"No shit, Christopher. It's been months. You're in a great place, you're close friends and even a blind man can see the attraction. So what's keeping you?"

"I dunno."

"Bullshit. You do know. Now stop playing games, son. What's this all about?"

"I guess I'm scared, King. We both got a shitload of baggage we haul around, neither one of us has an exemplary track record when it comes to relationships and if we mess this up, a lot more than just our relationship will come crashing down on us. Sometimes I think we should just remain friends. It's safer to keep things as they are."

His friend raised his eyebrow.

"Safe, Christopher? If you want your life to be safe, you've chosen the wrong career path. You know very damn well that nothing in this life comes without a price, that nothing can be taken for granted. When Savannah got killed, what was your first thought?"

"That I never even had the chance to say goodbye, that I never told her how much I cared."

"Exactly! Wanna go through the same thing with Merri? Or do you want a chance at happiness? Yes, you could end up getting shot, you could end up growing apart or resenting each other. But you could also end up growing old together. Fact is; you won't know until you take that chance. Even in New Orleans, there's nobody who can predict the future. You have to make it for yourself. And believe me, it beats looking back and wondering about the 'what ifs' in life. If you have regrets, regret what you did do, not what you didn't do and perhaps should have."

"Like you and Linda?"

Pride nodded.

"I regret that we have drifted apart like we have, but not even one cell in my body regrets the time I spent with her. Without her, I would not have Laurel. Without her, I would have been a different man altogether."

Chris took another gulp of his beer, brooding in silence for a moment, then grinning to himself.

"You know what King? It doesn't even matter. I wouldn't be able to resist her for much longer anyway."

"So you'll go for it?"

"Like I said, she has something in mind. I'll let her play it out. Let the chips fall as they may."

"Good for you, both of you."

"So…just to be sure, you're okay with this? And not just as a friend and family member?"

"You're adults, Christopher. Keep it PG and above collar at the office, don't get into trouble and I'll do my best to keep Washington out of it."

"Thanks man."

"You're welcome. Want some desert?"

"Sure. Laissez les bon temps roulez."

"That's my boy."

888

Since her actual birthday would be on a Saturday, her coworkers had planned a party in the courtyard of their office for Friday evening. Merri had come in wearing her usual outfit of pantsuit, shirt and sensible shoes, but, with permission of her boss, had stashed a bag with party outfit and toiletries in his apartment, where she could clean up after they came back from whatever the day would bring them.

Luckily, it was a day without too much hassle. Even the bad guys played nice and were caught with a bare minimum of chases, kicks, punches or shots being fired, so they were all still in prime shape when the evening crept upon them.

As Sonja, Chris, Patton and Dwayne, along with the recently arrived Loretta and Sebastian, went about assembling food and putting up various decorations, Merri disappeared upstairs to Dwayne's apartment to change. After a quick shower (she had given herself a shave and a manicure-pedicure the evening before), she shimmied into her new dress, only adding a pair of lacy red panties to it, the open back not allowing a bra.

After a fall while chasing a fleeing suspect the week before, Merri had bumped the back of her head and was bleeding quite profusely. Pride had driven her to the ER, where the doctors had decided to place stitches. They had mercilessly shaved a part of her head in order to reach the gash. She had had her hair cut back the next day and was now again sporting the pixie style out of necessity, but Chris seemed to like the style on her, so she didn't mind as much anymore. As an advantage, it dried quickly and only needed a bit of wax to stay in place. Red strappy killer heels added some height and a set of sparkly ruby studs were the only accessories. If she wanted the dress to make a statement, she wouldn't need to add too much hoopla.

Some cherry red lipstick and subtle eyeliner completed the outfit and after spraying the delicate perfume she wore for special occasions into her cleavage and her wrists, she looked into the mirror.

Perfect.

Her eyes were sparkling with anticipation, and the mere thought of what she hoped would happen later that night added a natural blush to her cheeks no amount of rouge could mimic.

Yeah, Meredith Brody was ready to seduce her partner.

"Merri, you ready honey?"

It was Loretta gently knocking on the door. Ever since the kind medical examiner had found her lying unconscious in the shower, their relationship had shifted and now Loretta was as protective of her tenant as she was of her foster sons.

"Be down in a minute!"

"Okay then, dinner's about ready too."

She heard the other woman leave and heaved a sigh. It was a little ridiculous for her to be nervous; it wasn't like she was a blushing maiden, but still. Oh God, please let this night be the start for Chris and me to be more than we are. I love him; I know I do. Please let him see.

She crossed herself and with another sigh, opened the door. Here goes nothing.

The moment the door was opened and she appeared on the gallery looking over their secluded courtyard, all heads turned upward. It was Patton who wolf whistled and letting go of some of her nerves, Merri smiled at him. Dwayne gave her a look of appreciation. He too was a man after all. Sebastian fumbled as this was obviously beyond his social skills. But Merri didn't see much of this. Her eyes sought only one other pair.

Her breath hitched when she met them. Doe brown capturing dark blue. And he her willing prisoner. Gracefully she descended the stairs and it was a good thing she never noticed the small push King gave his surrogate son, as the last one seemed in a world of his own, frozen and unable to move from the bubble he was in.

Indeed, Chris felt like he was in some kind of a vacuum. There was this weird kind of buzzing in his ears and like in a sappy romantic movie, his peripheral vision was blurred as he focused on the sexy lady in red coming toward him in slow motion.

So this was what it felt like to be clubbed over the head with a sledgehammer. To be sucker punched in the gut. Sweet Mary (or Merri), mother of God! As regal, as angelic as she had looked in that bridal gown of hers, that was as sinful as she looked now. She was a temptress, a she-devil.

The message could not have been more clear had she painted it across the sky. She was completely and totally his for the taking. And he would not, could not resist.

Feeling the nudge in his back, he stumbled forward, quickly composed himself and walked over to the end of the staircase, holding out his hand for her to take. She took it and he kissed the back of her hand before twirling her around with a giddy lightheartedness he hadn't felt in all these many dark long months, setting her down and offering her his arm to escort her over to their waiting coworkers and friends.

The party was wonderful, Merri assumed. The gifts she received were all nice and thoughtful (especially the beautiful antique wooden inlay chocolate box Chris had found her, of course filled with her favorite strawberry bonbons and a promise of an endless resupply) and the food was delicious, even if she had no idea what it was she was eating. Her whole world was reduced to one person of interest. His smile, his bright eyes that never left her, as if afraid she would disappear if he so much as blinked. The heat of his hand on her body (the small of her bare back, her arm, her knee under the table, her face in a gentle caress), his touch burning yet so very natural. The sweet scent of him (a citrusy soap, just a hint of spicy cologne and something simply uniquely him) wafting around them as they swayed gently to the piano music Dwayne and his daughter were playing.

She hoped the film Sebastian was making would remind her later of what was being said and done and given, since she knew there was only one thing she would remember forever.

As for Chris, he was getting increasingly agitated. This party with coworkers had seemed nice (and safe, of course) when they planned it. Now he desperately wanted to get her alone, to take the oh so blatant invitation, but he figured it was her party and as long as she seemed to be having fun teasing him, he had no choice but to follow her lead, no matter how uncomfortably tight his dark jeans were getting in the groin area with every deliberate sway of her hips against his.

And she knew it. Minx.

She rubbed her leg along his again and he suppressed a groan. But apparently she had heard it anyway, because her sparkling, teasing brown eyes met his.

"You okay, LaSalle?"

"Never been better."

"Really? And here I was going to try to make it better. Guess it's not needed then."

She playfully tried to wriggle away from his embrace, but with a feral growl, Chris pulled her back.

"Merri, if I don't kiss you right now, I'm gonna explode like a Mardi Gras fireworks display."

"I like fireworks."

"Well, then let me try and make you see them."

Whatever she was going to say, it soon got swallowed by his warm lips on hers.

Fireworks indeed! Sweet Jesus, what a kiss! The little appetizer they'd had on the evening of her bachelorette party had been sweet agony, but paled in comparison with the way it made both of them feel now that they were free to express their feelings.

Clinging to him, Merri desperately tried to get even closer, to devour this delectable, yummy, adorable man whole and he didn't put up much of a fight, pulling her flush against him and deepening their connection, taking all their breath away and making them feel deliciously light-headed.

Slowly their need for oxygen overrode their need to stay connected and they parted with audible gasps for air and moans of disappointment at the loss of contact. As the haze around them cleared, they became acutely aware of their surroundings. Including the fact that all of their coworkers had witnessed their little PDA.

Well shit. This little performance was not exactly as PG as he had promised King things would stay between him and Merri when they were at the office. On the other hand, this was not office time, they were having a party in her honor and in his own way Chris was certainly honoring the woman he was so in love with.

He dared glance in the general direction of his boss and friends…and heaved another sigh of relief. None of them looked angry or even remotely surprised. More like they had known all along and were merely miffed it had taken hem so long. When none of them said anything, Merri leaned a little more forward (was that even possible?) and whispered in his ear:

"Take me home, Chris."

Oh hell yeah! It took all his skills, all his determination to go through the motions of saying a proper goodbye to their team members, especially with all of them knowing what the sudden hurry of their departure was all about. It would have been embarrassing if said emotion would only fit into a brain that was totally overridden by the more primal need of having the woman of his dreams all to himself.

 _Reviews much appreciated as always._

 _Also, remember this story will be relocated to the M-section with next installment!_


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N** : Well, if you're reading this, you've found me in the naughty section. Welcome. As you may suspect, things are heating up in this chapter. If you don't like smut, you can skip this chapter and not lose any particular content.

 **Disclaimer** : Sadly, still not mine.

They would never know how many of their guardian angels must have been at work that night, because neither one of them could remember how in the hell they had gotten to her place in one piece, with all the heated looks thrown in the other one's direction and with hands groping at any available piece of skin. As soon as her door was closed behind them, he had her backed up against it and only the notion that it would be a lot more romantic as well as comfortable to take their activities to the bedroom; prevented him from taking her then and there.

Merri was mesmerized by her partner-about-to-turn-lover. She of course had already had the opportunity to see and touch him, but the knowledge that this time, there was no reason for him to suppress his groans or for her to keep herself in check, added an extra dimension to his appeal. Plus, there were still pieces of him she had yet to explore (she would finally get to see the infamous Big Al tattoo) and her mouth watered at the mere idea. Which wasn't the only body part that was dripping with wetness, something Chris was delighted to find out when his daring fingers slipped underneath her dress to pull the flimsy lace material of her panties aside, brushing against her rapidly swelling folds in the process.

"So wet. All for me, Merri?"

"Yesss," she hissed as he pushed one long, calloused finger deep inside of her, quickly followed by another one, crooking them slightly and making her tremble so violently she almost lost her already delicate balance, not aided by the heels she was wearing either.

Retracting his hand and not even trying to hide his rather smug smile when she whimpered at the loss of sweet friction, Chris was quick to pick her up and take her to the bedroom, where he sat her down on the bed and gently unstrapped her shoes (kissing her feet and making her giggle), before pulling the red silk fabric over her head and peeling her soaked lace panties off her legs.

And if he had thought that she was pretty in her dress, he was in awe of her when she was slowly revealed to him in all her naked beauty. Nothing about Merri Brody even hinted at her age as she had always worked out to be able to keep up with the bad guys who were never inclined to slow down as they were being chased.

"Sweet, sweet Merri. You're gorgeous."

His open admiration made her blush and a warmth that was not just arousal spread through her belly. Her eager eyes followed his every fluid move as he undressed, seeing him in a totally different light now that she was finally allowed to look, touch and taste her fill, which she fully intended to do. She giggled when he turned his back to her as he pushed his boxers down, agonizingly slowly, revealing the notorious elephant tattoo on his damn fine derriere. Wait…were those dimples on his lower back? How cute was that?

"That's one good looking elephant you got there, Chris."

"You ain't even seen his trunk yet."

Grinning at his own dirty joke, he turned to face her and a shiver of pure longing danced up her spine. From head to toe, front to back and every sideway, the man was ridiculously beautiful. And even quite generously endowed, if she was honest. She hoped she could take him in. But God, how she wanted him. Badly. And right now! She lifted the sheets in invitation.

"Better get that trunk in here, hunk."

He raised his eyebrows in surprise at her cheesy remark and she shrugged it off, but it did earn her another patented LaSalle grin.

Once in bed, he proved himself to be a sweet, attentive and inventive lover, insisting on servicing her first, because it was her birthday after all.

And oh dear Lord did he know what he was doing! His slightly calloused, but oh so skilled and surprisingly tender hands showed as much dexterity as they did when he was wielding a gun and his mouth proved to be good for a lot more than spouting out 'LaSalle-wisdoms' in his adorable Southern drawl.

First, he paid extensive tribute to her breasts, molding them and suckling the hardened tips until she felt drunk with desire. And that was before he redirected his attentions, travelling further and further South, toying with her bellybutton and the creamy skin of her toned inner thighs, making her weep with anticipation, until he finally pulled her legs over each of his shoulders and started to focus solely on her dripping folds.

"So much sweet honey. All for me."

She nodded breathlessly. Yes, all for him.

"Let's have a taste here, shall we?"

After that, his strong but agile tongue lapped out and caught the first drops of her wetness. He hummed in satisfaction as Merri moaned, hands gripping the sheets so tight he thought she might tear them to pieces. But he would worry about that later. Right now, he wanted to make her combust, give all she had to give to him.

Merri had no choice but to let him take control. Heat was rising faster and faster with every expert stroke of his fingers inside of her and with every lick and suckle of his tongue against her tender flesh, causing more wetness to pool between her trembling legs and making Merri purr and keen in pleasure. And soon, very soon, she found herself completely unable to stop the torrent of bliss overtaking her whole, claiming body and soul as she cried out.

"Oh God, Chris!"

Still slightly dizzy from her overwhelming climax, she watched him through heavily lidded eyes as he lazily lapped up her torrent of juices, drawing out her bliss for as long as he could, before he crawled his way up to her body, kissing her sweat-soaked skin in in random places until he reached her lips and claimed them in a hungry kiss, which she answered just as greedily, not caring about her own taste still lingering on his lips and tongue.

His arousal felt hot, hard and heavy against her thigh and he moaned as she grabbed him and shifted a little to try and guide him closer to where she was aching for him, one incredible orgasm not nearly enough to satisfy her need for him. He growled at her touch and grinned his sexy, happy wide smile at her, the one that made her knees tremble.

"Aren't you eager, my love," He teased as she tried to push her hips up to close the gap, groaning in protest when he merely brushed against her opening.

"Condom?" he asked, and she smiled.

"Top drawer. New box."

He grinned at her. "I like a girl who comes prepared."

"I truly can't say I was prepared when I came just now."

"Oooh, naughty Merri."

Leaning on one arm, Chris managed to reach over and open the drawer of her nightstand, taking out a square foil package and tearing it open with his teeth, careful not to tear into the delicate latex itself. Once sheathed, he repositioned himself between her legs, rubbing the tip of his erection against her folds, teasing the throbbing bud that was the center of her excitement. Mewling, Merri again moved her hips.

"Stop teasing, LaSalle. I need you. Now."

A second later, she screamed in delight when he finally obliged and sank into her craving body, surprise but relieved at the relative ease with which it happened. He didn't want to be cocky (no pun intended), but he knew he was uncomfortably big for some women and he was glad Merri wasn't one of them. He would have hated to hurt her, even a little. But apparently his little oral session had worked in their favor and she was now so incredibly wet and ready for him, he could easily push in to the very hilt. For one moment, he held perfectly still, eyes locking with hers, which were as bright as his own; in awe of their union.

Then, unable to stall the primal urge to move and encouraged by a small tilt of Merri's pelvic bone, Chris started the slow, sensuous rhythm of push and pull, his every movement met by her and accompanied by a sweet symphony of sighs and moans and screams of building pleasure.

She was getting closer and closer to that point of total oblivion as Chris slightly changed his angle to hit a particular sweet point, buried deep inside of her and sadly out of reach for most of her past lovers. She jerked her hips and mewled again, shamelessly begging and beyond caring. She needed release and she needed it now, desperately so.

"Chris, please, more…"

"You close, Merri?"

"Yessss…"

"Wanna come for me again?"

"Please…"

He then moved his hand to the place a little above where their bodies were joined and found her pulsing clit, which he gently flicked with his thumb, causing his lover to arch her back and scream. Enjoying the result, he did it again, and again, simultaneously pushing himself in deeper to brush against her sweet spot.

The combined attack was her undoing. Clinging to him for support, Merri wailed and let her climax overtake her senses. Her whole body shook as the ecstasy flooded her, leaving her breathless and boneless; a liquid heap of smoldering nerve endings.

Chris himself was mesmerized by the feeling of Merri's walls clenching around him. Nothing had ever come close to how he felt now; regardless of his many 'indiscretions' since Savannah's death. This was real. This was home.

This was love.

He managed to push into her one, two, three more times and then could no longer withstand the pull. With her name a cry on his lips, he let himself fall into the abyss after her, filling the condom with a series of powerful spurts and collapsing on top of her with a contented sigh.

Completely spent, they stayed like that, legs intertwined and him still inside of her, until he could catch his breath and gather enough equilibrium to push himself off and stagger to the bathroom to dispose of the condom.

While there, he quickly wet a washcloth with lukewarm water and some mild soap and took it over to his lover, crawling in the bed next to her and tenderly wiping off her still trembling, sweat-soaked body, which made her sigh in pleasure.

"Hmmm, that was…"

She couldn't find the right words. Why was it that she, who was hardly a nun, was so completely undone by this man? Grinning broadly, he dropped the cloth on the floor and took her in his arms, stretching out on the bed and pulling her flush against him. She put her head on his chest, one small hand toying with the springy hairs growing there, now damp with perspiration.

"Yeah, it was," he agreed with her, dropping a kiss on top of her head, before tilting her chin up so he could kiss her properly, languidly, sweetly.

Not feeling the need to talk, Chris just covered their naked bodies with her blankets and felt her snuggle closer to him, still humming softly. God, Merri felt amazing. Warm, sated, safe and overall loved, cocooned as she was in his strong embrace, the hairs on his chest pleasantly tickling her cheek; the consistency exactly right: masculine but not too dense.

This was certainly the best birthday she ever had, at least since she didn't get to share them with her twin. Or was it? One glance at her alarm clock showed her it was indeed eight minutes past midnight. Giddy with delight, she started softly singing to herself, causing Chris to burst out laughing when he recognized her singing "Happy Birthday to me".

"Happy Birthday, my lovely Agent Brody."

"Thanks Chris, for making it a truly happy one."

He grinned again, crawling back on top of her.

"Technically, it wasn't your birthday yet when we started this. So I guess, to make it official…"

His mouth captured hers again and his hands started wandering down, down…Merri felt another rush of wetness forming…oh yeah, another round for the birthday girl…oh yes!

"Wanna be on top, Merri?"

Grinning from ear to ear, she nodded and climbed on top of him, grabbing another condom and, after sheathing him, guiding his hard again cock into her heat, undulating her hips until she found her sweet spot again and starting a rhythm that had them both gasping in minutes. Still, even when her climax engulfed her, Chris showed no sign of letting go.

It was now her turn to collapse on top of him, with his still rock hard erection buried deep inside of her. As soon as she had caught her breath (God, she really was forty if she felt like going into hibernation for a month after three orgasms), she looked down into her fantastic lover's crystal blue eyes, darkened with lust, but sparkling with an emotion she hoped to identify as love..

"Chris?"

He thrust up his hips, making her squeal in pleasure-pain. Clearly, he wasn't about to let her go.

"Got one more in ya, ya think?"

One more? Was he trying to kill her? It was a great way to go, but still…

"I…I…"

"Come on, Merri, let's make it an even four. How about you turn on your hands and knees?"

She wanted to tell him doggy style was not her favorite position, that it usually didn't wield any positive results for her, (possibly because it left her without any control over what was happening and she didn't like to be the submissive one) so he probably wouldn't give her the fourth climax he seemed set upon. But she trusted Christopher LaSalle with her very life; knew he would never abuse the control he had over her and so she felt safe enough to humor him. She figured she could always fake it if she had to. That's why, with a small nod, she obediently rolled off of him and got into the suggested position, wriggling her ass playfully.

She felt his hands wander over her ass cheeks, pinching them (she yelped), before he found his grip on her waist, again rubbing his erection over her folds, making her gasp in anticipation. Which then turned into a moan as Chris entered her with one strong thrust. To her surprise, it wasn't at all the unpleasant, uncomfortable position it had been with previous lovers. In fact it was…kinda nice. Quite good, honestly. It even was…oh holy crap! What was that? What the…oh my God, oh my God…what was…that…how many sweet spots did she have? How did he know where to find them? What the… Ooohhh my….this was…goooood…

Any coherent thought left her mind until she was filled with nothing but jolts of the most exquisite pleasure she had ever felt as Chris set a steady, not too fast pace, hitting all her known spots with every deep thrust and several she hadn't even known about herself. Unable to fight it or even fully comprehend it; Merri felt herself spiral out of control as her body shook and the most incredible, unhuman noises left her throat involuntarily.

She was dying and going straight to Heaven. That, or she was more alive than ever with every nerve ending on full alert. And still, Chris relentlessly drove himself into her warm, wet tunnel, again and again, uttering words of encouragement and a combined litany of expletives and compliments, until the ever tightening coil inside her belly finally snapped and the whole world exploded all around her into millions of bright stars. She tried to scream, opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

Deaf and blind (and apparently mute) to the rest of the world, she rode out the convulsions that threatened to wrack her entire body and that seemed to go on for an eternity. If orgasms were measured on the Richter scale, it sure as hell was a twelve!

Somewhere in the middle of this earthquake, Chris too found his second release of the night as, with an almost primeval war cry, he surrendered himself to the building pleasure.

It took a frightening amount of time before either of them had the wherewithal to move. Eventually Chris managed to get up. Shaking quite a bit, his arms and legs feeling rubbery with the exertion, he staggered to the bathroom again and gathered his still trembling girl into his arms when he crawled back in bed beside her, not even trying to hide his smug grin when he heard the soft post-coital whimpers escaping her throat.

"You okay, my love?"

As an answer, she snuggled closer to his chest and whimper-sighed; her ability to actually form coherent sentences and then speak them out loud momentarily failing her in the aftermath of the best sex she'd ever had.

Looking back, she would never quite understand where they got the stamina from, but during that night, their bodies, minds and souls came together over and over again, each bringing them to another crescendo as they explored and worshipped and loved.

He found out she was ticklish, especially around her waist and the soles of her feet, her giggling sounding like music to his ears as she begged him to stop his relentless assault. In retaliation, she grabbed his member (which hardened immediately in her hand) and found out he yelped like a little girl when she first stroked him until he was completely erect and then enveloped him in her warm mouth, licking and suckling him like a lollipop until he exploded like a geyser in the back of her throat. She swallowed and came to the conclusion that he didn't even seem to taste that bad. Which he didn't think she did either. In fact, he was very keen on returning the favor once he had caught his breath, resulting in another toe-curling orgasm for his definitely very Sweet Merri.

And so what if they ate all her chocolates and some quickly heated up leftovers in between, their bodies screaming for nourishment during the exercise they made them go through? For the first time in a long time, sex was not just a means to an end (getting off when frustration was building), it was really, actually fun!

And yes, perhaps she should have been slightly embarrassed when Chris accidentally opened the wrong drawer and instead of a new condom, found her little pink vibrator (sue her; she had needs too). His wicked grin made her initial awkwardness disappear pretty fast though and when he switched it on and carefully brushed the buzzing toy against her weeping folds before dipping it in deep inside of her, testing its effect, she was more than happy to surrender again.

Finally, as dawn was fast approaching, the two new lovers fell asleep in each other's arms, exhausted, sated and happy.

 _Ahem, yeah…that was…ok well, it was pretty obvious what that was. Don't say I didn't warn you. But what do you all think? Let me know. Thanks._

 _Next: More happy bubbly stuff or…_


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N** : So…the morning after. What will it bring for our happy couple? Well, read on and find out.

 **Disclaimer** : If they were not mine the previous 9 chapters, I'm pretty sure they're not mine now.

It was nearly eleven AM when Merri came back to the land of the living, finding the bed quite void of her man, though the sheets were still warm, indicating he hadn't left hours ago while she was sleeping. A quick scan of the room confirmed that he couldn't have gone very far. Everything but his boxers was still where they had dropped it the night before, including his phone, gun and badge on her bedside table along with hers.

Her roaming eyes swiped over the bottom sheet and landed on something yellow. It was a single tiger lily. She smiled when she picked it up, twirling it between her fingers. Typical LaSalle, not going for the usual red rose, but rather for the exotic version of the symbol of their beloved city. She loved it! A piece of paper lay underneath the bright flower. It was a small, heart shaped folded note. Curious, she opened it.

 _Happy Birthday, Brodelicious!_

 _Now be a good girl and pretend to be asleep_

 _as your knight in shining armor (me)_

 _brings you your breakfast in bed and_

 _kisses the princess (you) awake._

 _Kisses to come! Love, Chris._

 _p.s. You know I love you?_

 _Because I do._

 _I love_

 _You._

Merri found herself unexpectedly tearing up, then laughing at the cheesiness of the note as well as her own girlishness. Dear God, one passionate night with Chris and she turned into a sappy teenager. Must be the overload of hormones.

Yet, she knew that wasn't true. She knew exactly why she was so touched, literally as well as figuratively.

She had been raised a very private person. Not that her parents were unfeeling or even unkind, but they were not the warm, cuddling kind either. Being busy with their own lives meant that they had never mustered any interest in anything other than the academic achievements of their daughters. That and criticizing her posture. Which was not a real disaster, since the twins had each other to turn to and always did.

However, when Emily had died, it had left Merri with a void she had never known how to fill. Gone was the only person who represented any warmth and comfort in her life, the person who knew and kept all her sister's secrets and would share her own.

And with no substitute, especially on days like this, Merri had forced herself to go on believing she was a grown woman who didn't need to be mollycoddled by anyone, not even when the going got tough and not even on her birthday. For the last ten years, it had worked, mostly. She wasn't too happy with it, but managed to accept it as a fact of life.

Whenever the gap got too painful or when the loneliness engulfed her, she had allowed people, men, access to her home and her bed, but not her heart. James had come close, but then trampled on it, and then again when she foolhardily tried a second time, all the while knowing she was knocking on the wrong door.

But now, after all these years, it seemed like she had finally found the one source of comfort, of pleasure, of joy. A source that was hers for the taking and gave boundlessly and effortlessly. Finally, years after her sister's death, she found herself on one page with one significant person. One she could trust.

One she could love.

And God, she did. Her whole withered, battered, hibernating heart had awoken and come back to life and the strength of its beat overwhelmed her.

And while it did scare her, it excited and pleased her even more.

A scuttle behind her warned her of his approach. Obediently, she crawled back between the sheets, clutching the note and closing her eyes like a perfect rendition of Sleeping Beauty, all the while trying to stifle the giggles fighting a way out of her throat.

She was just so damn HAPPY!

She heard a curse as he must have tripped over a discarded piece of clothing and smothered a laugh in her pillowcase. Chris managed to gently set down the breakfast tray on the opposite bedside table and hovered over her, kissing her forehead, her nose and then finally her lips.

"Hmmm, good morning, sweet Birthday Girl of mine."

She kissed him back for some seconds; unsuccessfully trying to suppress a jolt of pleasure. Why did he have to look even tastier than the delicious looking chocolate chip pancakes on the tray, topped with syrup and surrounded by fresh strawberries? It should be made illegal for this man to walk around with nothing but his boxer briefs on. The punishment would be of a corporal kind, of course.

She turned her glance back to the tray and saw that, aside from the pancakes and the fruit, there was a bowl of whipped cream, a mug of steaming hot coffee and a glass of orange juice. And a small vase with three more lilies. So cheerful.

The scent of the pancakes, combined with the flowers, the spicy aroma of fresh coffee and the unmistakable, unique smell of Chris LaSalle assaulted her nostrils, instantly awaking her stomach as well as a few selected female body parts.

No, she spoke to herself sternly. You will eat breakfast first. Your body needs sustenance and Chris went out of his way to prepare this feast for you. The least you can do is control your primal urges and enjoy his offerings. His FOOD offerings.

"Hang on a minute," he asked her, leaving the bedroom to return with his own tray. And a small, flat wrapped package.

"What's that?"

"My breakfast."

"No shit, Special Agent LaSalle. I meant the package."

He grinned at her, almost spraying his coffee all over the sheets.

"You've seen my package, Merri. Lots of times, up close, as I recall. Played with it too."

She playfully nudged his ribs. "Pervert! That's not what I meant and you know it."

"Do I? What other package could you mean?"

"The one on your tray, doofus."

"Hey, be nice or I'll never let you play with my package again."

"You wouldn't last a day."

He grinned again and softly stroked her thigh underneath the sheets.

"Neither would you my dear."

Gasping, she pulled his hand away before it could venture up any closer.

"Breakfast first, LaSalle. Then my gift, then we can play."

"So now you think this is yours?"

"What, you have more lovers who celebrate their birthday today? Wait, on second thought, don't answer that."

All she got was a shrug, but after she finished her last bite of pancake (Yummy!) and washed it away with her last sip of coffee, he handed her the pretty gift-wrapped parcel and placed a sweet but rather chaste peck on her cheek.

"Happy birthday, my sweet Merri."

Giddy as a small girl, she tore off the shiny blue paper. And gasped again at what was revealed. It was an obviously antique, delicate silver picture frame, engraved with the fleur-de-lis. The picture inside was one of the two of them, taken at the opening of Pride's bar. True, they weren't dating at the time, they themselves still blissfully unaware of the rapidly growing attraction that was now impossible to deny. Yet, whoever had taken the picture (Merri's guess was Loretta), had captured their closeness as they leaned into each other to share a private joke.

She had wanted to ask him why he hadn't given her this the evening before when she had also received the chocolate box, but now that she held the picture and could see the obvious; she didn't have to.

This was too intimate a gift to share with coworkers.

"How could we have missed it?" She wondered out loud.

"Missed what, Merri?"

She caressed his cheek, then the picture.

"This. I mean, we look like we're in love, even when we weren't. Or at least when we didn't know we were."

He took the picture from her, seeing what she saw.

"I guess we were meant to be. Eventually. But I don't regret being good friends and partners with you first. Not treating you the way I treated a lot of women right after Savannah died."

It came out apologetic, as if he felt somehow ashamed of his behavior, which she may not have likes, but which she couldn't condemn him for either. It had been and frankly still was none of her business really. She caressed his cheek again.

"They consented, Chris. Don't judge yourself too harshly for the way you coped with her death."

Straightening his shoulders and setting the picture aside, he took her in his arms and kissed her properly.

"You're right, sweet Merri. No more sad talk. It's your birthday and we should celebrate it for all its worth."

Grinning slightly, Merri let her hand venture South underneath the sheets, stroking his already half hard member until she got his full attention, pun intended.

The remainder of the day was spent lounging around the house. With the weather taking a turn for the worse and the rain splashing against the windows, there was nothing more satisfying than spending all their time indoors, staying warm and close as they found new ways to play and love and explore. The shower, the couch, the coffee table, the dinner table, the kitchen counter; they would never be the same.

With their playful sense of humor restored, it was the happiest birthday Merri had had since her childhood. Realizing her sister would have been the most happy for her, reassured her it was okay, more than okay to want this, to have this and to enjoy it to the fullest.

Sunday morning found them at the breakfast table (after waking up to another incredible romp in bed; which was continued in the shower), looking out on the patio which glistened in the sun as it chased the last of yesterday's rainclouds away.

"Beautiful day today," Merri announced from behind her cup of coffee, humming appreciatively at the taste of the warm beverage. Her new boyfriend had many talents and certainly making a mean cup of java was one of them.

"Yup, it is. Wanna go outside, find some fun?"

"You didn't have fun inside? Pun intended?"

He almost spat out his own coffee as he burst out laughing, wiping his chin when droplets of the liquid threatened to drip down.

"I love it when you talk dirty to me, Merri. And yes, I sure had my fun playing inside, but Honey, we ain't teenagers no more. I need a break before my equipment wears out."

"Pussy."

"No, sweetlips, that's your equipment."

Grinning like the lovesick idiot she was, she nodded.

"Touché, LaSalle. But okay, let's venture into the city. Work up some apatite."

Still smiling at each other, they gathered their clothes and got dressed with a minimum of distraction by groping hands and wandering lips.

An hour later, they were walking hand in hand down Bourbon Street where despite the fact it was a Sunday, there was as always enough to do and see and explore.

There was a crafts market going on and Chris bought her a set of beautiful hand painted bowls. She thanked him with a soft kiss; the first they shared in public. After that, he kept buying her every small trinket she set her eyes upon, until she stopped him, claiming she now had enough paintings, statuettes and pottery to decorate a mansion.

"Well, maybe one day we'll have one. With the basketball team we're gonna create, we'll need all the room we can get."

Merri's face fell a little and Chris stopped his future dreaming to look at her.

"Merri, my sweet, I put my foot in my mouth didn't I?"

She shrugged.

"I'm forty, Chris. We'd be lucky if, by the time we're ready to think of a family, I could give you even one child."

Tears were pooling quickly in the corners of her doe eyes with the crushing feeling that this relationship she so selfishly wanted was doomed before it had even begun. Chris was young enough to start the family he always wanted, full of screaming little LaSalles wreaking havoc. He would make a great father. But not if he stuck around her. Sure, she knew that, sometimes with a little assistance, more and more women over forty could and did conceive. But she also knew the risks involved. A higher chance of miscarriage. Of complications during birth. Of giving life to a child with all kinds of deficiencies or handicaps. She didn't think she would love a none-perfect child any less (and neither would Chris, she knew all too well), but with their lifestyle as it was, was it worth it?

She had waited too long. Even James hadn't waited for her and had gotten another woman pregnant. Her twice ex-fiancé now had the family she would most likely never have.

Maybe it was time to face the facts. Cut this sweet, honorable man loose and live her life an old spinster. Maybe she should get a cat instead.

"Merri…MERRI!"

Snapping out of her increasingly somber mood, Merri looked at the man next to her, whose face was filled with love and concern as he knew all too well which direction her thoughts had taken. He gently grabbed her upper arms and forced her to look at him.

"Sweet Merri, listen to me. Yes, I have always wanted kids. But I want to make you happy and be happy with you even more. If we can have one kid, I'll be the happiest guy in the world. If we can't have any of our own, we can look into alternatives. We can adopt, make room for foster kids like Loretta did. There are dozens of options. But most important is that I want to explore them with you. Whatever happens, I'm with you. I love you. You hear me?"

Yeah, she heard him. And he was delusional. Still in the throes of their passionate weekend. But eventually, his bubble would burst and he would see the facts as they were: that he was wasting his time with an older woman while all this time; he could have set up the family he had always dreamed of. He would come to resent her and she would see the hurt and feel responsible for it. It would be intolerable for the both of them. She wanted to spare them the agony of a blank future. Not when he deserved so much more than she could possibly give him.

"Chris, I…"

His face fell, his eyes clouding over at the sad sound of her voice.

"You don't believe me, do you?"

She believed he believed it, but was it enough?

"I want to, but…"

Suddenly angry, he lashed out.

"But nothing, Merri. Either my word, my promise is good enough for you, or we might as well fold our cards and call it quits right now."

Oh no. Oh dear God no. Call her selfish, call her temporary insane, but the moment she realized how close she was to actually seeing him walk away then and there; she knew she couldn't take the pain. Not yet. Not now. They may not have forever, but…she wanted him. At least for as long as he would have her. Even if the forever he seemed to promise her, promise them, was not meant to be in the end. But the end could not be now.

Not yet.

Not getting an answer from her, Chris was about to draw his own conclusions. Feeling his heart crumble into dust (was it really over before it began? Had he lost her already?), he nodded and turned away, only to hear an almost animalistic cry coming from her throat as she propelled herself forward, the momentum smacking him into a wall and temporarily knocking the wind out of him. Crying hysterically, she clung to him, begging his forgiveness. Not knowing what else to do, he tried to calm her as best as he could, rubbing her back in soothing circles, repeating the same sentence over and over again until she calmed down somewhat.

"It's okay, sweet Merri. I ain't leavin' ya. I'm right here. Not goin' anywhere. Stop cryin' please. It's all okay, my Sweet."

When her waterfall was reduced to a mere trickle, he gently lifted up her face from where she had it buried against his chest, soaking his shirt in the meantime.

"You okay again?"

She nodded, a little embarrassed at her outburst of emotions.

"Yeah, I…I think so. I'm so sorry, Chris. I just…I have this weird tendency not to believe in my own happiness. I always dread the moment it comes crashing down on me. It has happened so many times before already."

"I know the feeling, sweet Merri. But we have to fight for this, for us. The world is a scary place when you're down on your knees, I know, but I still got some fighting days left in me."

He traced a stray tear streak from her cheek.

"I need you to have my back though. Can you do that? Can you fight for the happiness we deserve?"

Could she? She didn't know. But he was right; the alternative was to let the big bad world drag you down and knowing he would willingly go down with her, she knew she had no other option but to fight for their future.

"I'll give it my best shot."

He grinned.

"See? With your aim, we can't possibly fail."

He hugged her close.

"We can do this. I know we can."

Hugging him back, she actually felt the weight of her breakdown being lifted from her shoulders; his willpower and positivity rubbing off on her. So with a lot less trepidation in her voice, she echoed his statement.

"We can do this."

 _Phew, crisis averted. But something's on the horizon that will turn their lives upside down…stick with me and find out. In the meantime, your reviews are most appreciated._


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N** : I know James has a British accent on the show, but for the sake of the story, I made him an American citizen. You'll figure out why soon enough. I also had to take some liberties when it came to legal stuff and jargon. Feel free to criticize, but just remember I'm not an American, or a lawyer, so I just write what seems right to me. Any constructive help to make my story more credible is welcome though.

 **Disclaimer** : No, no, no, still not mine. Except for original characters.

They thought they could do this. They wanted to do this. Have this. This wonderful relationship between partners who understood each other, motivated and supported each other no matter what happened.

Like the day she got a letter from James, informing her that he had fallen in love again with the mother of his child and had married her. He hoped Merri understood and would someday find the happiness he had found with his wife and their son. Though Merri no longer cared about her own botched wedding, Chris didn't mind her being slightly taken aback, if only because it did remind her of the rejection she had felt months ago.

Or the day of the anniversary of Savannah's death, now two years ago. She and Chris went back to Alabama together to visit her grave and pay their respects. At first, Chris asked to be left alone and she stood waiting for him at a respectable distance, but still within his line of sight should he need her. She saw him place the flowers they'd gotten on the stone slab with her name carved on it, crouching down with his hands folded in what seemed like a prayer. When he stood and reached out to her a couple of minutes later, she hurried to his side and held onto his hand as he silently wept for the sake of the woman who had died so violently and prematurely and whom he had loved before he had found his way to Merri.

Merri didn't begrudge him his grief, nor was she jealous of the love Chris had indeed once felt for Savannah, though it was kind of odd to realize that, had this unfortunate woman not been shot, Merri would not be in this relationship with him at all. That he might have been killed instead of his then girlfriend, or that nothing may have happened and she would have been watching from a distance as Chris built a future with Savannah instead of her.

Yet, things were as they were and here she was standing with Chris, who loved her now. And she could support him as he paid his respects to his childhood sweetheart, made somewhat easier by the fact Chris had never made her feel like she had to compete with her ghost.

When her boyfriend squeezed her hand, she looked up at him.

"I eh…I told Savannah about you. I think…I think she would have been okay with us. Would have wanted me to be happy again."

"And I'm happy I make you happy."

"You do. Don't ever doubt that you do."

"I don't. And you make me happy too."

Hand in hand, they left the cemetery and went on to visit the LaSalle family, where Merri finally met his mother and sister and hooked back up with a surprisingly even-tempered and lucid Cade, who applauded their relationship, something she could tell Chris valued a lot. For all the concerns he'd had about his big brother, Cade's approval was very important to him. With their father almost absent from their lives, it had been Cade's example the young Chris had followed.

Life shifted from quiet days to unnerving days (sometimes the bad guys did outsmart or outrun them) to downright beautiful moments, but the couple remained steadfast and met every challenge heads-on, some tougher than others.

Like the moment that one of his regular hospital patients was taking a turn for the worse. He spent two nights at the kid's bedside, keeping vigil in order to give the exhausted parents a chance to get some undoubtedly fitful sleep. The boy died the next morning, just after his parents had come back into his room and Chris had left to go home and get some sleep himself.

Chris and Merri were there to attend his wake and Chris held his head high and his eyes dry, until the boy's mother came over and gave him the book they had last read in together. At a mere six years old, the boy had written his will and his parents had found it in his coloring book. He'd divided his meagre belongings between all his friends and Chris was to have their favorite book.

Badass Special Agent LaSalle broke down in tears then and there and Merri's hand had hurt for days from the sheer force with which Chris had gripped it.

They fought sometimes, of course they did and when they did, it was loud and violent, though never physical. But they made up just as fast and furious and with the best sex in their lives. Merri learned to let go of her control issues, to simply enjoy his displays of affection and take the subsequent mess in stride. His elaborate meals were magnificent and he was always so genuinely pleased when she praised his efforts (and rewarded him afterwards), so who cared if the stack of dishes in her kitchen teetered over because neither one of them felt like getting up to do something about it, like perhaps washing them? Cuddling together in front of the TV was so much more enjoyable after a day of chasing down New Orleans's finest scumbags.

Chris learned that sometimes, no matter how much he loved her and knew she loved him too, she needed her space to brood and stew on things that had her confused or hurt. The first time she had pushed him away after a though case and locked him out of the bathroom (which they normally always left open) he'd been hurt and honestly a bit insulted, but she had come to him after a while, kissed him soundly and told him in clear terms that every now and then, she needed to gather her thoughts on her own and that it in no way meant she no longer loved or trusted him.

She had shown him indeed how much she loved him that very same night.

A few months after her birthday, they had found a working balance between their private time and their jobs. As promised, King had kept them from Washington's radar and so far, other than their own little family, nobody seemed to know that they were a couple. To those more observant, their connection was clear as day. Whenever they could, they would touch. Not maul or cuddle (unless they thought they could get away with it), but usually just small, insignificant looking touches that still meant the world to both of them. His hand on the small of her back when he helped her into the car or in passing as he held the door open for her. A quick linking of hands, sometimes mere brushes of fingertips, right before they had to part ways for whatever reason. His hand on her thigh (or a bit higher if he was in a daring mood) as they were driving.

If touching wasn't an option, they exchanged a quick look, and when they weren't in each other's line of sight, they would speak words of encouragement, nothing more serious than 'be careful' or 'see you soon'. No terms of endearment or silly nicknames. They knew what they meant to say without the need for them. Any moment out in the field was a moment they could lose each other forever and though they had the fullest faith in the other as well as in the rest of their team, it had become paramount to let their better half know that they were loved, just in case it would be the last thing they would get to say.

It was almost Halloween when life threw them a curveball nobody could have seen coming. As usual around any holiday, Chris was getting into a party mood. Halloween was one of his favorite holidays and he planned to go costume-hunting with Merri today. They'd spent the evening in their own homes as they sometimes did after a tough case. But when he arrived at her place to pick her up, coffee and donuts in hand, he found his girlfriend sitting motionless on the couch, holding a letter of some sorts.

"Merri?"

No answer.

"Sweet Merri?"

She remained frozen.

"Brodelicious?"

Nothing. Which was odd, since the cheesy nickname would normally at least generate some kind of response. He gingerly sat down next to her, taking her hand in his own as it became obvious something had gotten her really distressed.

"Merri, talk to me sweetheart. What's wrong? What can I do?"

She finally looked up at him, tears in her eyes. Then silently handed him the letter. He scanned the heading. It was from a lawyer's firm; Cooper, Winfield & Haynes. Curious now, he read on.

And his heart sank.

The formality of the words didn't do justice to the sad news it conveyed. The sad news being that Mr. and Mrs. Lathom (née DeVaal) had been killed in a car accident in Johannesburg, South Africa a few days earlier. Their son, who was in the backseat, had miraculously survived and wasn't even injured, safe for some cuts and bruises.

No living relatives of Mr. Lathom had been found and none of Mrs. Lathom's family had come forward. Her parents were long gone and apparently she had become estranged from her only brother, who had shown no interest in his nephew. But at least Mr. Lathom had left a will with his lawyer, Mr. Winfield, back in the United States, in which all his personal belongings were to go to his wife and son.

The son who was now an instant orphan. A dual South-African/American citizen, with no other family left to take care of him, at least not in South Africa.

Poor kiddo. Going from one parent to two to none in just a few short months. Still, there was more to the letter and Chris read on. And nearly choked when the last paragraphs and their implications sank in.

James had apparently given some thought to the possibility of a tragic accident like this happening and had taken on a life insurance policy for both his wife and himself, the benefits of which were to go to Nigel, to be put in a trust fund by his guardian until he reached the legal age of eighteen.

The guardian, should no family be tracked down and should she accept?

Meredith Brody.

His Merri was supposed to be the guardian of this baby. The baby of her ex-fiancé; the same man who had left her twice, the second time because of the existence of this baby. And who hadn't even asked the woman he was supposed to marry if she would ever be willing or able to take on a severe responsibility like this? No wonder she was shocked into immobilization.

Not knowing what else to do, Chris put the letter down on the coffee table in front of him and took his girlfriend in his arms. She relaxed against him, though still didn't say a word. When she finally spoke, her voice was hollow with shock.

"A baby, Chris. The poor kid is just a baby. He has no-one."

As if to drive the story home; she handed him a bundle of pictures of a cute little boy with a wide smile and bright chocolate brown eyes.

Chris looked from the pictures back at her, already knowing where this was heading. And for some reason not dreading it half as much as maybe he should.

"What's going through your mind, Sweet Merri?"

"A lot. Possibilities. Impossibilities. Risks. Responsibilities. Changes. Us."

"Us? What about us?"

"Chris, I can't make a decision like this on my own. James appointed me as Nigel's guardian, but I'm with you now and selfish as it sounds, you to me always, always come first. If this is not something you think I should do or we should do, then I won't. I couldn't bear to lose you, not even for a child of a man who basically hated your guts."

"Can't blame the kid for that, Merri. And you don't have to worry about me. You're my world too and should you decide to be this kid's legal guardian, then I'll stand by you no matter what."

She palmed his cheek and leaned in for a kiss she desperately needed, grateful for his unwavering support, something she knew she shouldn't have doubted to begin with.

But when the letter had arrived (by courier even) earlier that morning, it had rattled her completely. First, there was the initial shock of James's death (she may no longer love the guy, she hadn't stopped caring for his wellbeing), then the realization that there was a hopeless baby involved and then the added shock of the implications.

Merri wasn't new to making life-changing decisions, but up until very recently, her decisions only revolved around herself. After the death of her sister, she had felt a loner, a wanderer, whose comings and goings had little effect on anyone but her. But now there was Chris. Their extended work family. The home she had built for herself.

How did a baby fit into this? Into their dangerous, irregular jobs? The evolvement of their relationship?

Her first gut reaction had been rejection of the entire idea. Just don't do it. Call the lawyer, let him know you weren't capable of taking in an infant, let them find another home for the child, throw away the letter and forget all about it. Pretend it never happened. Nobody would be the wiser. Not even Chris and certainly not Nigel. Surely there were good foster homes in South Africa? It really wasn't a Third World country, was it? It wasn't like he would starve to death, right? No, of course he wouldn't. He would be just fine. Someone else would surely adopt him. He was a cute baby in the pictures, who could resist?

But then doubt had settled in. She was pretty selfish leaving this kid in the hands of strangers while James had thought her willing and capable of raising him. Plus, Chris was hardly a hurdle. He loved kids, doted on them and might even jump at the chance of being this boy's daddy. Hadn't she known from the start he wanted a big family? Hadn't their first fallout been because of it?

Now she could give him a son after all. Even if she turned out to be too old to successfully reproduce, she could still give him a family. If she didn't do this and he would ever find out (one could never know for sure that one's darkest secrets couldn't be unearthed and used against them; as they all found out on a daily bases while witnessing geniuses like Patton at work), he may not want to have anything to do with her anymore, considering her a monster for willing to throw an innocent child by the wayside because it didn't fit into her lifestyle.

And yet…wasn't it too early in their relationship? There was no doubt in her mind that she loved Chris and that he was as devoted to her as she was to him. They were a good and stable couple. But then again, so had Dwayne and Linda seemed to all who knew them and they eventually failed.

Eventually though was not now. Even if she and Chris eventually broke up (don't think about it; don't jinx it!), it may not be for years and years and in the meantime, they could give this baby boy Nigel a childhood in which he felt loved and safe.

"Chris?"

"Yes, Merri?"

"If I do this…if we do this…it'll be a big commitment. Not just to Nigel but to each other. Do you think…are we even there yet?"

Chris sighed. It was an honest question. They were doing great, but they had only been together for a few months and if this letter hadn't arrived when it had, he would have opted for at least a few more months before taking any next major step like moving in together (not that they didn't spend most nights together these days anyway, but they still kept their own homes for those occasions when they preferred to be alone) or proposing marriage. But she was right. If they did this, it would accelerate their relationship considerably and the potential harm was major if they failed to keep up.

Yet…there was nothing he wouldn't do for his Merri and he would run like the wind and fight until his very last breath to keep her and those they loved safe and sound. This baby was someone he could come to love, whose future already depended heavily on their decision. Could they in all good conscience turn him down? After all, it really wasn't his fault Chris had once upon a time wanted to strangle his father.

He reread the letter and made up his mind.

"Merri, it's Saturday now, so there's nobody at the lawyer's office anyway. Why don't we sleep on this and call this lawyer on Monday to hear what he has to say? Even if we decide to take this little guy in, it may take weeks, even months before we actually get custody of him. Months in which we can get used to the idea, figure out how we are going to handle being parents, how to deal with this at work, how to tell King he'll be a granddad…"

She snorted at that.

"He'll make a cool grandpa. And you'll make an amazing daddy."

"You'll make a wonderful mommy."

She nodded.

"Monday. We'll call the lawyer on Monday."

 _So what does the lawyer have to say? Find out in the next chapter. Reviews are great!_


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N** : Brownie points for those who recognize my little crossover with another show. I just couldn't help myself. It fit so nicely.

 **Disclaimer** : Own the one new original character. Don't own NCIS: NOLA, nor the other show I used as a backdrop for the first four paragraphs.

They didn't discuss the matter much for the rest of the weekend. Instead, Chris opted to take her out for the day, an offer Merri readily took. They packed a picnic basket and a cool box with food and drinks and went on their way, without really discussing where they were heading. With Chris at the wheel though, his instincts took him home, staying clear from the highway, instead taking the more scenic routes he still knew like the back of his hand.

They had barely crossed the state border line between Mississippi and Alabama, when they got a flat tire and stranded near a sweet Alabamian town. With no spare (how incredibly stupid of them not to check before they left) and little cell phone reception in the remote area, there was nothing they could do but wait, which they tried to make more pleasant by having something to eat and drink.

OK, having someone to make out with like teenagers in the backseat wasn't really too bad either.

Their little impromptu make-out session was rudely interrupted by a horn blaring (the Dixie tune, of course)

"Need any help there?"

Nodding, they clambered out of the vehicle and shook the hand of their savior: a friendly young man with a familiar drawl, who told them he was the local bar owner, married to one of the town's doctors and proud father of a little boy.

As he towed them into town, he spontaneously invited them to a party, which was held at the town square and which was hosted by their friend the Mayor and his wife. When it turned out that this Mayor was a formal NFL star player, Chris had begged Merri to stay for the entire weekend. She didn't have the heart to refuse him and simply took their go-bags from the trunk.

They found a sweet B&B which had a vacant room, had dinner at the bar and Merri quickly became friends with the lady doctor, who, being born and bred in New York, had experienced the same culture shock and adjustment issues she had. Though in the end they did conclude that their Bama boys were the absolute cream of the crop, including their thick as molasses, hick accents (and abs to die for, of course).

All in all, it was a fun weekend out and for Merri, seeing Chris play with the couple's little boy, made her make up her mind right then and there.

When she would call the lawyer, she would tell him she did want Nigel.

Still, it was with sweaty palms that she and Chris walked into the classy office of Cooper, Winfield & Haynes on Tuesday for the appointment set the day before. They'd already had a lengthy discussion with their coworkers and, as they had hoped for, all of them had promised their support in any way possible. Though King had pulled them aside for a moment.

"Christopher, Merri, you know I've so far kept the Director off your backs, but if you're going to raise a child together, I don't know how much longer I can keep up the façade. Perhaps it's time you came clean with your relationship."

Chris protested.

"King, you know what that means. Either Merri or I will have to resign!"

Thinking about it for a moment, King shook his head.

"I may have a way out. Let me see to this."

Hours later, he came back to them with a wide smile on his face.

"Guys, you're going to be okay. Both of you can stay where you are. Don't worry about fraternization rules."

"How…?"

"Friends in high places, son."

They had no idea what or who he was talking about until they found a copy of a statement in their mailboxes. Signed by no other than Sarah Porter, Secretary of the Navy.

Friends in high places indeed. But hey, she owed Gibbs a favor and Gibbs owed King, so it all worked out just fine.

"Thanks King. We'll name our next kid after you."

Merri elbowed her boyfriend in the ribs, causing King to laugh.

"One child at a time, Christopher."

So now they were here, for that one child. Mr. Joseph ("Call me Joe") Winfield showed them into his spacious corner office and offered them a seat and something to drink, after which he opened a file on his desk and started explaining the whole procedure to them.

It was long and lengthy, with lots of hurdles left to take before poor little Nigel could even be allowed into the US to meet his potential new parents.

Like the fact that it was only Merri's name mentioned in the will, seeing that James hadn't known she was in a relationship. As a single woman (on paper); it wouldn't be easy for her to adopt on her own. Not impossible, but not easy. And even though she and Chris were committed to each other, they weren't married, which meant that, should she want to legally adopt her new ward and succeed in doing so, Chris still had no parental rights should anything happen to his girlfriend. Which would then start the whole custody battle all over again.

Then there was a lot of paperwork to deal with and more time consuming issues to solve, including the boy's dual citizenship, his rehabilitation to a country he had never seen before and the guardianship over his trust fund the moment the life insurance company would pay, which would only happen when they were completely sure that the tragic accident was indeed nothing more than a tragic accident. Local police was still investigating the matter and had not given a statement yet.

"All in all, it could be up to six months, perhaps even closer to a year before Nigel Lathom can be put in your custody ma'am. I'm very sorry, but that's the way the world works, regardless of the tragedy surrounding this sad affair."

"Where is he now?"

"Local child protective services have put him into an orphanage, run by nuns. We're in close contact with them and I can assure you he's fine. It's not luxurious by any standards, but he has everything a child his age needs."

"Is there anything we can do in the meantime?"

"Get your own affairs in order. Child protective services over here will want to check your health, your finances and a possible criminal record. Seeing that you're both federal agents, I don't suspect any of that will be a problem, though."

"Thank you very much, Joe."

"You're very welcome. I'll set this train in motion for you and I'll keep you posted."

He gallantly walked them out the door. Before they stepped out, the lawyer turned to them one more time.

"One more thing: I know it may not be for the most romantic of reasons, but for practicality's sake, I would suggest you two get married as soon as possible. Married couples do have more rights in the state of Louisiana when it comes to legal adoption. It'll be one less hurdle to overcome later."

"We'll look into it. Thanks again for your help today."

"No problem. Good day, Miss Brody, Mr. LaSalle."

When they stepped outside, blinking against the low autumn sun, Chris put his arms around her, kissing her sweetly.

"That was a lot to take in," Merri mumbled against his lips and Chris nodded, resting his forehead against hers.

"Yeah, it was, but let's take it step by step, okay? Nigel's okay for now and we'd better do this all by the books, before anyone can come in later and take him away again."

"You're right I guess."

"Of course I am. Ouch!"

She had poked him in the ribs again.

With his arm around her shoulder, they walked to the car to get back to the office, veering off when Chris's stomach started growling, reminding them it was time to get lunch. Chris left her standing in line at their favorite take-out stop as he got a phone call, quickly giving her his order and pecking her cheek, telling her he would wait outside, away from the noise.

"It's probably King, wanting to know how it all went."

With his phone pressed against his ear, he made his way out into the sun, where he put the device back in his pocket (there had been no call) and strode over to the jeweler's store on the opposite side of the busy street. With Merri waiting in line, her back to the main entrance, he was sure she didn't see him slip inside.

It was probably the fastest purchase of an engagement ring the salesman had ever seen (not that he was complaining; far from it), but yeah, he was in a hurry. He was also glad he found a ring that was perfect for his beloved Merri. A modest but perfectly cut diamond, flanked by two smaller sapphires, embedded in a simple, matted platinum band. It was the complete opposite from the ring she had been wearing before, but he knew she would love this.

Hurrying outside after using his Absolute Emergency ONLY credit card (and not caring if he had just gone bankrupt because of it); he made a quick call to King to indeed tell him how it went and request a little more time for lunch, which was granted as the older man understood very well that the couple needed some private time to let all the information sink in properly. Chris made it back to the front of the store just in time to see Merri emerge with their lunch in a bag.

"King said to take our time with lunch. Wanna go find a nice spot outside?"

They found a seat in a nearby park. Blissfully unaware of her boyfriend's whereabouts and the plans brooding in his mind, Merri handed Chris his lunch and unwrapped her own sandwich, biting into it with a gusto. After a mind spinning morning like she had, she was pretty famished. She was concentrating on her food in such a way, she didn't notice her partner not touching his food at all. Unlike her, with the newly purchased ring burning a hole in his jeans pocket, Chris was too nervous to swallow as much as a bite until the same ring was proudly adorning her hand.

It really was now or never. It may not be the most idyllic setting, but at least is was sunny and there weren't too many people around to make this even more awkward. Oh well, here goes nothing.

"Hey Merri?"

She looked up at him, chewing furiously on the big bite she had just taken. She finally swallowed and opened her mouth just long enough to answer him, before she bit off another chunk of her really, really good sandwich.

"Yeah, Chris?"

"You remember the last piece of advice the lawyer gave us?"

She nodded and swallowed again. "Kinda hard to forget, why?"

"Because eh…would ya?"

"Would I what, marry you?"

"Well, yeah, would ya?"

She grinned, kind of enjoying seeing him squirm, though when she saw his face she realized he was serious and even fidgety. Food forgotten for a moment, she reached out for his hand, grabbing it and entwining their fingers.

"Chris, if you were to propose to me, and I mean really propose, you know, with a ring and you on one knee, than I..."

It was all the encouragement he needed. Prying the small square box from his jeans with his free hand, he opened it and sat down on one knee in front of her.

"Sweet Merri, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Gasping, she froze. She had anticipated a proposal at some point, maybe even hastened by what they'd heard this morning, but it wasn't even an hour after they had left the office and here he was; ring in hand, looking at her expectedly, lovingly. And still trembling with nerves.

It was so unlike him to be this anxious. He could stay cool and even aloof in blasting shootouts, but here, kneeling in front of her, he looked like one wrong word from her could break him clean in half. And maybe it could.

Her eyes met his and she made up her mind. Yes, it may be quite soon in their relationship and yes, it was just a bit ridiculous to get engaged twice in under nine months, but she absolutely adored this man and the sacrifices he was willing to make for her on a daily basis.

There was only one answer possible. A smile broke out on her face, accompanied by some happy tears she couldn't prevent from escaping.

"Yes," she hiccupped. "Yes, my dearest Chris. I'd be honored to be your wife!"

A smile so bright it rivaled the sun, broke out on his handsome, animated face as he pried the ring from its confinement and gently placed it on the finger of her outstretched left hand (where it fit perfectly, even though he'd had to guess the size), kissing it softly, before cupping her face and kissing her lips sweetly, tenderly, not caring if she noticed that he too was trying to convulsively swallow his tears.

They didn't notice some onlookers breaking out in applause and catcalls when they realized what they had just witnessed on this beautiful autumn afternoon.

His Merri. His fiancée. Soon (hopefully very soon) to be his wife. And mother of their adopted little boy. And after that…the possibilities were endless. He felt like he could reach the sky with ease. Nothing was impossible today.

As far as engagement announcements went, her second one was met by a lot more enthusiasm by their coworkers than the first. Loretta actually squealed when Merri showed her the beautiful, understated ring on the monitor and blinked back a few tears when Merri asked her to be her matron of honor.

King too seemed to have trouble reeling in his emotions when he hugged the both of them. He then spontaneously invited everybody over for celebratory drinks at his bar after work. On the house. But when Chris asked him to be his best man, his boss refused.

"That's Cade's place, son. Ask your brother first."

"And if he can't? If he's…ya know…"

They both knew what he meant and King placed his hand on Chris's shoulder.

"If your brother can't stand up with you, than yes, I'll gladly take his place."

Chris took Patton aside and asked him if he could do an in depth search on Nigel Lathom, his parents' death, his whereabouts and pretty much everything else they'd better know before they got into this adoption process. Perhaps he was just being paranoid, but he just wanted to make sure that the accident was a real accident and that nothing could come and bite either them or little Nigel in the ass at any point. Not just because of the insurance money, but because nothing was more upsetting than losing this baby later because someone had it in for him or someone hadn't crossed all T's or dotted all I's. He made their resident computer genius promise not to tell Merri anything about his searches and to report anything suspicious (if there was) only to Chris himself. There was no need to add more stress on her if there may not be anything to justify it.

The impromptu party was a fun affair, though they didn't stay for very long. They still had to work in the morning and they wanted to have a celebration of their own too.

A very, very satisfactory one it was. Merri was certain she would never ever tire of Chris, not as a friend and certainly not as a lover. She feasted on his beautifully toned body as much as he worshipped hers, effortlessly bringing her to one sweet climax after another, always looking for new ways to make her sigh in pleasure or scream his name in mindless ecstasy. Always giving himself to her so fully and willingly.

Later, much later, as she lay curled up in his arms, head resting against his broad chest while she toyed with her new ring (so pretty; he knew her so well), she wondered out loud:

"Chris, would you have proposed if it wasn't for Nigel?"

Chris, still trying to get his heart rate down after their last round between the sheets (not to mention the lovely prelude in the shower), kissed the top of her head.

"Yeah, I think I woulda. I may not have run into a jewelry store to buy a ring in under fifteen minutes and proposed during lunch break in the park, but yeah…I do wanna marry ya, so I woulda asked."

He lifted her head so he could look at her.

"Ya still worried about that, Merri? About us not being ready? We talked about this, right?"

"I know we did. I just…it overwhelms me a little. I don't want you to feel pushed or forced into this."

"Merri, Sweet Merri, I don't. I really don't. I love you. I want to start a family with you. I know this is not the most traditional way to go about it, but it's the situation we're in and we just gotta deal with it. Unless…"

His dark blue eyes grew serious.

"You do still want this too, right? Me? And Nigel?"

Funny how stuff like that happened. Was it really only Saturday morning that found her full of doubt? Was it only three days later that she made these life-changing decisions and not just for herself, but for two other people too? And actually believing in them?

"Yes, Chris. I want both of you."

He kissed her lips soundly and pulled her flush on top of him, his already hard again member brushing against her leg in a silent invitation; one she accepted as she straddled him and took him in with a small gasp of pleasure.

No, Merri thought, as the sensations crashed through her. There was no way she would ever not want Christopher LaSalle.

 _Up next: Wedding bells and baby._


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N:** Welcome back, my dear readers. Let's go further on Chris and Merri's journey as they are about to become parents…

 **To Marjorie** : You mentioned in your review that Kensi and Deeks in NCIS:LA never had a problem with fraternization rules. But I think it wouldn't be an issue for them, as Deeks is LAPD and not an NCIS Agent. I do believe it could be an issue for Chris and Merri though…but thanks as always for your comments and your loyalty. I appreciate it very much.

 **Disclaimer** : I proudly claim original characters as my own. The rest belongs to CBS.

The next weekend found Merri in a familiar shop in Mobile, Alabama. Viv was beside herself with delight when she heard of the upcoming nuptials. Remembering her promise, she immediately locked up the front entrance of the store and directed her new client to the private office behind the main shopping area. Tape measurer in hand and pins on an old-fashioned cushion bracelet, she scribbled down measurements and rolled out sheet after sheet of the most delicate fabrics.

How odd this was, Merri mused. She had dreaded the dress shopping process last time, not wanting to even imagine herself in anything remotely resembling a wedding gown but now? God help her, but she wanted it all.

Slowly but surely, Vivian's idea started taking shape. Of course for now it was just a drawing on a piece of paper, but from what she could make out, it would be absolutely stunning. Loosely shaped like her first wedding dress, this one would have some delicate embroidery done around the neckline and the (again) low cut back. It would give Merri a tall, statuesque silhouette. With the leftover cloth, Vivian designed a matching fascinator hairpiece for her, since she still refused to wear a veil.

Even the limited timeframe couldn't deter the sweet lady, especially not when Merri told her about the reason behind it and showed her the pictures of Nigel she carried along with her, unaware it already made her look and act like a proud mommy.

"You'll be a beautiful bride, my dear. And Chris will be a handsome husband. How lucky you are, both of you. And how lucky this boy will be with two such parents."

"He deserves to be. He's already lost his biological parents. And despite of the fact his dad and I broke up over him, he needs someone to take care of him and apparently, James thought I was the right person for the job. Ironic perhaps, but there you have it."

They said their goodbyes with a hug and Merri promised to send her an invitation to the wedding as soon as they had set a date.

In between all the happiness and the warm way with which she was accepted by her fiancé's family, Merri still got one blow to recover from.

Unlike with her first wedding, she had sent out invitations to her parents, including a letter that explained the situation and some pictures of their soon to be son-in-law and adopted grandson, this time hoping they would make it and see for themselves that their only remaining daughter was doing well for herself and that she was happy.

It was her father who called and threw a proverbial bucket of ice over her head, claiming that Chris was nothing more than a gold digger who was after the child's trust fund. And if he wasn't, that he would leave her for someone younger and unattached soon enough. Had she thought things over?

Merri seethed. Without even knowing him, her dad had passed his judgment onto her groom. She took a moment to regain her composure and when she felt back in control, Merri informed him in ice cold tones that indeed, she had thought things over very well and that he and her mother (assuming she felt the same way) were no longer welcome at the wedding, in her life or that of the grandchild they would never get to meet.

Sobbing with angry tears, she hung up the phone and plopped down on the couch, where Chris found her half an hour later, takeout bags in hand. When she told him what it was that had gotten her so upset this time, he put down the food and simply gathered her in his arms.

"I'm sorry, sweet Merri. But I promise you, even without your parents there, our wedding day will be the most beautiful day of our lives."

She nodded against his chest, reveling in the safety of his familiar warmth. She felt him chuckle when he added:

"Besides, if I wanted Nigel's trust fund, I'd have to stick with the little guy for the sext seventeen years anyway, so there you go. Seventeen years with me guaranteed, no matter what my motives really are."

Despite of herself, she laughed.

"Well in that case, might as well make you my sex slave. At least I'll have some good use out of you."

He put his hand on his heart.

"Oh, Merri, you wound me."

"You love it."

"Oddly enough, I do. I love you."

"I love you too."

He kissed her soundly, wriggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"Good, now what was that about being your sex slave?"

She giggled when he picked her up and put her over her shoulder, heading for the bedroom, their food cold and forgotten on the coffee table.

With the help of their friends, things were organized surprisingly fast and Merri wondered not for the first time, how many debts were owed to the man she was working for. And exactly how much he was willing to do to make his protégé, his crown Prince happy. Merri was well aware that Dwayne Pride was doing this more out of loyalty to Chris than to her. Not that he ever said it out loud, but if it weren't for the fact that this time around, their beloved Christopher was the groom to be, she knew he wouldn't have interfered. He hadn't when she was supposed to get married to James. He'd only stood up when that sad affair went down the drain, but again, he had protected his surrogate son before he had come to her aid.

But she understood their bond and didn't begrudge her beloved Chris anything. He could have picked a far worse man than Dwayne Pride as a role model.

Two months after Chris's proposal and a week before Christmas, they said their vows in a simple but elegant ceremony, with only a few close friends, family and coworkers attending. Again, Gibbs, Abby and Tony had come over and much to their surprise, they were accompanied by not only Director Vance but also SecNav Sarah Porter, who congratulated them and told them to consider her signed statement a wedding gift since she had to bend the anti-fraternization rule to accommodate them.

"Just don't make me regret my decision to overlook the rules for you."

It was an easy promise to make.

In an attempt to mend fences somewhat, Merri's mother had sent her a very sweet, personal gift: Her sister Emily's sweet sixteen pearls. Merri had blinked back a few tears when she had opened the box, remembering their sixteenth's birthday very well.

Emily had always been the softer one of the twins. Easy to love, even-tempered and a lot more extraverted than her older by fifteen minutes sister, she had gracefully accepted the traditional pearl necklace they were both presented with on the morning of their birthday. Merri however, in the midst of puberty and rebellion, had blatantly refused to wear the old-fashioned piece of jewelry and had badgered her mother into exchanging it for something she (at that time) did like.

Now, at forty, she didn't even remember what it was she had gotten instead, except for another fracture in the relationship between herself and her mother.

For her to send her daughter these pearls on her wedding day, with the added note that today, she might appreciate it a lot more, was a major step in the right direction, though she didn't dare cross her husband and show up without him. Merri didn't blame her for that though. She couldn't imagine going anywhere without Chris anymore and she wondered how they would act around each other after forty-five years of marriage.

In the absence of her father, she had asked Pride to give her away. With Cade being more than happy and stable enough to be his brother's best man, Pride had his proverbial hands free to take up this role and he gladly accepted. On his arm, in her beautiful custom made wedding dress (Viv had really outdone herself and was proudly sitting next to Chris's mother), she glided toward her groom, who looked as handsome as ever in a dark blue tailor made suit.

This time around, there was no hesitation. Personal vows were spoken, rings were exchanged, after which they shared their first kiss as Mr. and Mrs. LaSalle.

The day was a bit of a blur if they were honest. Chris couldn't take his eyes off of her. If he had thought she looked pretty (and so out of reach) in her first wedding dress, than this dress made her an angel. His angel.

At the party, they were presented with their wedding gift: two weeks at a luxury resort in Jamaica. And when they came back, tan, rested and ready for their future together, they found another surprise: their home (She had moved in with Chris after their engagement) was chock full of baby stuff. Everything they would need to provide for Nigel was there, all neatly lined up in boxes, ready to be unpacked as soon as they got the official notice when their adoptive son would arrive.

Which ended up being a tedious affair of forms to fill, visits to and from several bureaus, checking everything from their mental health (which Merri felt she was losing grip on pretty fast) to their financial business.

Every time they thought they were done, something or someone else came up or there was yet another questionnaire to be filled out.

It was almost April and they were ready to celebrate Easter when Merri and Chris were again summoned to appear at their lawyer's office. When they arrived, they were greeted by Mr. Winfield, who had a big smile on his face.

Inside the man's office, he gallantly offered Chris a cigar.

"Once upon a time, that was custom when a young man became a father."

It took them both a while to let the words sink in. Chris grasped his wife's hand, feeling it tremble in his own.

"Joe, are you saying what I think you're saying?"

As an answer, Joe handed them another bunch of papers.

"All these need are your signatures and then it's all set and done. When these papers are processed, Nigel Lathom is officially being transferred into your custody. You can go collect him yourselves if you'd like. Then all you have to do is bring the little fellah over to the judge here in New Orleans and sign the adoption papers."

"When?"

Merri was so excited, she forgot to be polite, but their very patient lawyer didn't seem to mind at all. They had really come to appreciate the man who had done so much for them these past few frustrating months.

"When can you go get him, you mean, Mrs. LaSalle?"

Merri nodded as she suppressed a shiver of excitement at not only hearing someone mention her new last name (she had taken on Chris's last name only on paper, thinking it was too confusing to have two Agents named LaSalle out in the field), but at the thought that their waiting had come to an end and that after a grueling six months since his parents had tragically passed away (luckily Patton hadn't come up with anything shady on the accident and neither had the local police), Nigel would finally have a new home again.

"I think it could be as early as next week. I'll let you know."

They got the phone call three days later. With consent of King and the Director, they booked themselves a plane ticket to Johannesburg and packed their bags.

After a gruesome 20 hour trip, including three layovers, they finally arrived at their hotel and after eight hours of almost comatose sleep, they rented a car (including a seat for Nigel) and drove to the orphanage where they were expected to meet their son for the first time.

Their son.

It sounded so unreal and yet; here they were. More than ready and willing to take him in.

They were welcomed very nicely by the Mother Superior herself, who informed them that the children were just done with their breakfast and asked them if they would like a tour around the orphanage. What Chris and Merri really wanted to do was to collect Nigel, but they decided to just be polite and go with the flow. Plus, one day, Nigel might appreciate some pictures of his temporary home.

The place was roomy and clean and they could see that the kids were all well-fed, healthy, clean and taken care of. If anything was the matter at all, it was the sad lack of human warmth. Though it was a bright and warm day in a usually sunny climate, the sheer white walls and straight row of beds held little kindness. It was not a place a child would easily call home. The nuns surely did all they could with what they had, but could apparently not afford a more bright and child-friendly environment. Merri immediately made a mental note to set up some fundraiser for this place to make up for that. Surely these kids could have a toy of their own? A new slide or swing or something on the desolated area behind the huge building?

If they couldn't adopt all of these kids, the least they could do for the less fortunate souls was make their home a bit friendlier. Merri was sure their friends would all agree.

After the tour around the place, they were taken back to the main office of Mother Superior and after yet some more forms to be filled and files to collect, the moment was finally there. They were left alone for a few minutes; the longest minutes of their lives, during which they sat with their hands entwined, fingers gripping so hard they were sure to be bruised the next day.

Finally, the door opened again and Mother Superior came back in, accompanied by a young nun dressed in immaculate white, carrying the now almost two-year old boy on her arm, dressed in nothing more than a diaper and blue onesie (it was stifling hot in the room) and slobbering all over the fist he had put in his mouth.

"His molars are coming in, so there will be some drooling on his part," the nun explained.

For a long moment, Merri and Chris just looked at the child, who looked back just as apprehensively; if not scared. Yet, his lip didn't wobble, his eyes didn't avert. Here was a child ready to take one on the chin. Maybe he'd already seen too many friendly, yet unfamiliar faces come and go to care too much about yet another couple of strangers.

Then, inevitably, came the moment Merri's patience ran out. She wanted her son and she wanted him now. With a maternal instinct she hadn't even known she processed until ten minutes ago, she reached out to him and gently, the girl placed the child in her arms.

"There you go, Ma'am. Here's Nigel, your son."

Merri smiled at the boy in her arms, who was squirming a little, but didn't start crying.

"Hey sweetie. I'm Merri. I'm your mommy."

Two pairs of big brown eyes met. And held. Merri stroked a tubby cheek with a gentle finger and then burst out in happy tears when she was rewarded with a shy smile, showing a row of tiny baby teeth and a lot of drool. But who cared? The first smile from her boy. Oh how could she have ever thought for even a minute he wasn't worth the trouble? She'd only held him for five minutes, but she was already willing to die for this child.

Her eyes sought those of her husband. Chris, who had stood by patiently, watching as mother and son bonded, now eagerly took his place. It was only with a little reluctance that she handed Nigel over to his new dad.

To be honest, Chris had been somewhat scared. He knew he was a natural with kids and some of them he met at the hospital already were traumatized by their illness. This boy had been there when his parents were lost forever and though everyone was convinced he wouldn't remember a thing growing up, Chris certainly didn't want to be an added factor of frustration and fear in this kid's rocky start in life.

Soon though, his anxiety evaporated when he too introduced himself.

"Hey bud. I'm Chris. Your daddy."

The brown orbs of the boy sought his own. Chris smiled encouragingly. A small (sticky wet) fist was thrust at him and he caught it in his own bigger hand. Tiny fingers curled around his index finger and then it was Chris's turn to shed some very unmanly tears when he too was on the receiving end of a broad toothy grin.

"Congratulation Mr. and Mrs. LaSalle. I hope you'll be very happy together," Mother Superior said and they could tell she was happy that at least one of her wards had found a safe and welcome home. Not all orphaned or abandoned kids were that lucky.

"Thank you, Mother Superior. And thank you too for taking such good care of him in the meantime."

"It was our duty and our pleasure. Nigel is a very sweet boy. God bless him and you for taking care of him. Go with God, my children."

This was it, Merri thought, as she and Chris walked out of the gates, she with a bag containing little Nigel's earthly possessions (some clothes, some diapers and his beloved teddy bear) and Chris carrying their boy, waved goodbye by the young nun who had carried Nigel in and who had tears in her eyes watching them leave.

This was it. They arrived as a duo; a married couple. They left as a trio. A family.

She was a mother now.

 _Next up…learning how to be a family…and how to keep going when the going gets though._


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N:** Exciting times are ahead for our couple. Can they survive all the changes coming to them? Or are they going to succumb to every day life pressure? Read on to find out

 **Disclaimer** : Don't own all characters you happen to recognize. Only Nigel is mine.

Chris and Merri spent two weeks in Johannesburg, playing tourist and getting to know their son. They took him to his old home and the cemetery where his parents were buried together and took some pictures there. He may not know what was happening right now, but James and Lucy Lathom had given him life and Merri would make sure they weren't forgotten.

For the most part, they were okay. Of course it took some time to get used to each other and the first nights at the hotel in Johannesburg were absolute mayhem, with temper tantrums and countless sleepless hours, which all ended in them taking the boy into their own bed to let him sleep in between them, which seemed to be the only thing to help calm him down considerably. But at least he slept through most of the flight back to New Orleans and settled in pretty well in his own nursery after they all came home.

Merri took a desk job for a while, wanting to spend as much time with her baby boy as she could. She didn't return to the field office until the fall, when they had found a reliable daycare center. Nigel was now officially registered as Nigel LaSalle, all steps taken and processed.

He was growing up pretty fast and as soon as he had left his terrible twos behind him, he was like any normal toddler. He slept and ate well, talked their heads off in his own cute version of his dad's Alabamian drawl, adored his momma and daddy, loved papa King and mama Etta (Loretta), shrieked with joy when Patton wheeled him around, had 'Onna' (Sonja) firmly wrapped around his stubby little finger, but was a little weary of Sebastian for some reason.

For a long time it seemed like he would remain an only child. Merri and Chris still wanted to try for a baby of their own, though they agreed that, seeing as they already had a child and they had physically demanding jobs to boot, they would not go down the medical road of IVF if they couldn't succeed naturally. In the course of the next eighteen months, Merri conceived three times. Sadly, all pregnancies ended in emotionally and physically draining miscarriages shortly before or after the third month. The last bleeding was so bad, Chris took his wife to the hospital, where she had to have a transfusion and was kept overnight to regain her strength.

Upon seeing her in such distress and having been told by her OB-GYN that every new attempt at her age was bound to be more troublesome, Chris decided the next sacrifice for his family should come from him. His mind made up, he told his wife what he planned to do.

"No more of this, Sweet Merri. I don't want to see you having to go through this again."

She looked at her husband with tear filled eyes, part relieved, part sad and guilty. Obviously, there was nothing wrong on Chris's side. He did manage to get her pregnant. It was all her. Her and her old, hostile womb. She had simply left it too long and now Chris was the one to suffer. Like she had feared all along.

"I can handle one more time, Chris. We can try one more time. Maybe next time…"

Chris interrupted her, shaking his head vehemently and almost in tears.

"No! Look at you, Merri. You lost a lot of blood this time. Next time may hurt you even more. I don't want to lose you over this. Nigel and I need you more than I need another child!"

"But…what about your basketball team?"

He smiled through his tears and shrugged.

"We already have one NBA star player in the making. I'm happy with that. My family is you and Nigel. That's a lot more than I could have wished for. It's plenty. I'm a lucky, lucky man."

Finally, she agreed with him and a week later, he had a vasectomy.

For a while, life took its normal course as Merri's body healed and they went back to work. Their busy lives and their setbacks took their toll though. With Merri being cranky and sad and hormonal after her miscarriages and with Chris's decision not to try any longer to have a baby of themselves, their love life took one nasty blow.

Chris had hoped that, without the pressure of trying to get pregnant and the subsequent disappointment when it went all wrong, their love life would slowly go back to the way it was before; a physical, pleasant expression of their mutual love. But his hope evaporated with every rejection or worse; every time she halfheartedly let him get on with it, like it was just one more chore on her to-do list.

And no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get her to relax long enough to enjoy it. Both physically as well as mentally, she remained closed off and there was nothing that seemed to help. The situation only got worse when Merri took Nigel's head cold and subsequent clinginess as an excuse to sleep in their son's room and stayed there, weeks after Nigel was on the mend.

Meanwhile, Merri's heart was in turmoil. She loved her husband still with all her heart, but didn't quite understand nor trust his affections anymore after her aging body refused to do what it was designed to do; have babies. She heard him say, again and again, that he loved her and always would, but she was sure he was trying to convince himself as much as her.

He would leave her. Maybe not now, but sooner or later, he would find someone else. Okay, so he had (quite literally) cut off his chances to become a biological father, but when he would come to regret that decision, as he ultimately would, who would he blame?

Right. So in order to guard her heart against what she perceived to be the inevitable blow of their separation, she chose to at least physically remove herself from his presence in the bedroom. Needs or not; she couldn't fake it any longer, just like he couldn't fake believing her. Plus, how could he deny her wanting to take care of her son?

A deep sense of loneliness settled over them, even when they were together. They were short-tempered and went through endless days of merely hard work and going home to take care of Nigel. There were no fights, no long discussions and neither one of them was seriously considering ending their marriage (the love was still alive underneath the pile of pain), but their lack of communication eroded their bond and they just didn't know for sure how to help each other through it.

At long last, seeing his coworkers struggle like they did, King took Chris aside.

"I have asked for backup from the DC office for next week. Laurel is in town and she's more than happy to take care of Nigel for the duration. You and Merri are going on vacation together. No excuses, no complaints."

"King, I…"

"You need this, Christopher. Your marriage is falling apart. You've hardly spent any quality time together since the day you took your son home and I know how kids always come first for a parent, but if you don't make your marriage your priority soon, you may not have one next year."

As if he didn't know that! And yet, the implications hurt. This wasn't just his fault! He was trying so damn hard and he would never, ever…

"I would never leave my family, King!"

"I know, but there's a huge difference between staying with your family and having a good marriage. Had I realized that any sooner, I might have been able to save my own. Now let me help you save yours. Take the offer, son. Please."

Seeing the truth in the older man's statement, they did take the offer, though it took Chris a while to convince Merri that a few days away from their boy would not kill either one of them. The first day in the Key West resort was strained. The weather was beautiful, the food excellent and the view magnificent, but it only now occurred to them that, other than the job and their son, they had run out of topics of conversation, their once so natural banter a long forgotten distant memory. Nigel had become their buffer against all painful topics they knew they should address, but avoided like the plague nonetheless.

Deadly silent, they ate their meals, took their walks and spent the first night on opposite sides of an unfamiliar bed with their backs turned to each other, neither one of them getting any sleep, both craving the once familiar touch of their partner, but not daring to ask for it.

The next day they went out again, burying themselves in the tourist buzz, only so they didn't have to try and talk about what was happening to them.

It was that magical moment at sunset that Chris broke, the stalemate and the fear of never getting out of their crisis finally overwhelming him. Standing behind his wife as she stared vacantly into the distance, he pulled her against him, strong arms clasping around her trim waist, resting his head on her shoulder. It hurt that she startled before relaxing a little, but he tried to take some comfort and strength from the fact she didn't ward him off either. With strangled voice, he whispered the one question he was afraid to hear the answer to, into her ear.

"Am I losing you Merri?"

Shocked into mobility, she turned to face him, tears springing in her eyes.

"I…I don't know. I don't want to, Chris."

He searched her expressive brown eyes for the truth she never knew how to hide in there.

"Do you still love me?"

Her answer was direct in words and confirmed by her eyes.

"I do love you, don't you know that?"

He shook his head sadly.

"We never say it anymore. We never show it anymore. I want to, I just didn't know if I should. If you would want me to, but I…I miss you. I miss us. The 'us' we were before we had Nigel, before your pregnancies went bad, before…"

"Do you regret having him?"

It sounded wounded and offended, like any mother instinctively defending her offspring. Chris shook his head vehemently.

"No, never. He's my son, our son and I love him. I just…dear God, Merri, you're my wife! We married sooner than I originally thought we would because of him and I'll never regret taking that step, but we are still more than just Nigel's mommy and daddy, more than just Special Agents Brody and LaSalle, more than…"

He hesitated, then finished his thoughts. "More than an unfortunate couple who can't have kids of their own. We are a team, a partnership, friends and lovers, or at least we were…and I want to have that back."

"Because you love me?"

Dear God, she really doubted that. How could they have let that happen?

"I do. I love you so much, Merri. Always will."

"Even after…"

"After what, sweet girl?"

Her lip wobbled and she swallowed before forcing the bitter words out.

"Even after we figured out I couldn't give us any kids?"

Tears now started falling in earnest and Chris could just strangle himself when realization hit him how his wife had carried the blame for her miscarriages all by herself. Had he been so wrapped up in his own disappointment that he hadn't seen how it had been eating her alive? Had he forced her to try again and again too many times, ignoring the signs that both her body and mind were fed up and tired?

Or was it Merri who had wanted to keep trying and who resented him for having the vasectomy that ended their dreams forever? Was that why she had become so distant from him in the bedroom, up to a point where she hardly ever spent one night in the same bed he was in?

Had it been all about conceiving for her? Had their time in the bedroom after his surgery been pointless to her, while he instead had attempted to make it be about them again? As a loving couple? Or did she merely think he had his needs and she needed to meet them in order to keep him, afraid he would stray if she didn't perform her spousal duties in the bedroom?

Damn it! What a mess…

Not knowing what else to do, Chris took her hand and led them to an empty bench, not letting go of her when they sat down. Scraping his throat against his own upcoming tears, he looked into her anguished brown eyes, wishing he could magically wipe the sadness he read in there, coming straight from her soul.

"Sweet Merri, listen to me, please. I love you. I really do love you. You kept me sane after Savannah passed. You have saved my life, my very soul countless of times. You've given me a beautiful son, who may not be from our bodies, but who is very much from our hearts. I'm sorry, my love, so sorry that I didn't show you my love often enough, or clearly enough, but I assure you it's still there and it's only grown these past few years. I admire you, I adore you and I think you're still and always will be the most beautiful, sexy, sweet, strong woman I ever met. I am so damn lucky to have you as my wife. And from now on, I'll show you every day. Unless…"

He swallowed as fear bubbled up in him. Chances were, he was still too late.

"Unless…" Merri urged.

"Unless it's too late and you don't want to try again. Please, tell me it's not too late."

Heart breaking and mentally slapping herself for the fear she had put into her husband's heart for their marriage, it was now her turn to put him at ease.

"No, Chris. It's not too late. Yes, I've felt guilty and quite alone after my miscarriages. For a while I was convinced that I might lose you to someone younger, someone better; a woman still able to give you the big family you always said you wanted. Until you had your vasectomy and then I thought you were just hanging around for the sake of Nigel. But I know now how stupid I was. How could I have missed your loyalty? I'm sorry too, Chris. And I love you. So much. I know I always will.

"Promise?"

"Yeah, I promise."

He drew her in for a kiss and for the first time in months, she eagerly responded, feeling a long forgotten but still familiar warmth spread through her body, bringing it back to life. Ending the kiss in a gasp (and a disappointed moan from him), she took his hand, leading him back to the hotel.

"Come, I got a surprise for you."

Inside their room, she took a small bag from her suitcase and disappeared into the bathroom, leaving Chris sitting on the edge of their bed, waiting in nervous anticipation.

She'd had no idea why she had packed this, but as she was browsing through her wardrobe, it had fallen of its hanger and she had gasped when she picked it up. Could it be a sign of some sorts? Could this garment that she had kept out of sentiment, be the key back to her husband's heart?

Oh she knew quite well that she too needed to work on their marriage, that most of the distance between them was her doing and so she intended to relax in his presence and perhaps even initiate some kisses, some touches…and to enjoy his touches again. She hoped she could.

Well, it was now or never.

When she finally came out, a small whimper escaped his lips, followed by a truly happy laugh that sounded almost foreign in his own ears. There she was. His Merri. The happy, pretty Merri from before. Wearing a familiar cherry red dress, which still fitted her like a glove and made her look younger than her now 44, look like a vision indeed.

"Remember me, Chris?"

Oh yes, he remembered. Although…

"I may need something extra to recall…"

She giggled (oh how sweet the sound) and swayed toward him, pushing him back on the bed and draping herself on top of him.

She kissed him and from that start sign, it was on like Donkey Kong! Hands were tugging at clothes (he was sure he would never find his shirt buttons again), throwing them everywhere, not caring where they landed. Lips were mashed together in hungry kisses. God, how they had missed this!

Until Chris slowed down, causing Merri to panic a little. Seeing it in her eyes, Chris kissed his wife again, tenderly.

"We got all the time in the world, Sweet Merri. Let me worship you properly."

True to his word, Chris set out on a slow, sensuous adventure to rediscover his wife's body. His memory came back to life as he checked all her known sweet spots. Her neck, her incredible breasts with their quickly hardening tips. She mewled and threw her head back when he took one of them in his mouth, suckling on it. He let go with a 'pop' and switched to the other one before Merri could let out a sigh of disappointment. He spent a glorious time licking, biting and suckling her nipples, while his right hand ventured south, tickling the soft patch of curls and gently parting her folds, finding her delicious wetness.

Merri moaned as he pushed first one, then another finger inside. God, how could she have forgotten it felt so good? Well, what did it matter anyway, she was enjoying it now! No way did she need to fake it either. Not this time.

Encouraged by the sounds she was making, Chris kissed his way down her body and after a little (frustratingly long!) detour via her legs, he settled himself between them and sniffed her arousal. A scent so uniquely hers and one he had certainly missed.

His tongue lapped out and he got his first taste of her honey. Merri screamed and promptly produced more. Groaning with delight, Chris started on the grateful task of drinking her dry.

"So sweet, you taste so damn sweet, my love."

Merri mewled and writhed on the bed, hands holding the sheets in a death grip as the fire rapidly spread inside her, until the inferno was completely out of her control and she screamed in mindless ecstasy.

Chris made his way back up and captured her lips with his own, giving her a taste of her own arousal. For some reason, it inflamed her even more and she reached out to grip his erection.

"Chris, I want you. Inside me. Right now."

He didn't waver and with one thrust, found his home, secretly glad there was no need for condoms anymore as he had always loved the feeling of Merri's still tight walls surrounding his flesh without any barriers. He started out with a slow, steady pace, his thrusts deep, making sure to hit all the spots he still remembered so well. She reacted by meeting his every move, spurring him on with small cries of pleasure; sounds he hadn't heard in many, many dark months, not even when they were intimate.

Moments later, she cried out again as her orgasm washed over her, dragging him along. He happily followed her lead.

When he came down from his high, he looked at his wife and was shocked to find her face wet with tears.

"Sweet Merri, have I hurt you?"

She shook her head vehemently and smiled through her tears.

"I missed you. So much. You were right with me, but I couldn't see it. I'm so sorry, Chris. So sorry."

He gathered the heaving mess his wife was into his arms and held on tight, whispering a litany of endearments in her ear until she calmed down.

They made love again later that night and for them it marked the start of their long overdue healing process. Slowly but surely they started talking again, laughing again, remembering what it was that had attracted them to each other in the first place.

The day before they were to go home, they walked into a small chapel they found and renewed their vows to each other in front of the altar; just the two of them. By the time they went home, holding hands on the plane, Merri and Christopher LaSalle were once again a couple deeply in love and ready for the future. Together.

 _You really didn't think I would let them drown, did you?_

 _Next chapter will be the last installment. What will the future bring? In the meantime, I hope my future will bring me your reviews. Thanks for voicing your opinion. I do appreciate it._


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N:** Well, here it is people: My fifteenth and final installment of this story. I hope I succeeded in giving this a proper ending. Thanks a lot to those who stuck by me till the end and those who took the time to leave a review. Your encouragements are a writer's most precious gifts.

 **A/N II** : No idea if the University of Alabama has a female basketball team, but it does here.

 **Disclaimer:** Original characters belong to me. Characters whom you know and recognize are from CBS. Easy as that.

They were a happy trio for the next few years and had stopped thinking about adding to their family, when opportunity presented itself again.

During a particularly nasty case, they met Alexandra, a seventeen year old daughter of a Navy Captain, whose ship was docked in New Orleans for repairs and resupplies, as well as some hard-earned leave time for her loyal crew. The Captain was a widower and a very conservative man, whose only child lived with her grandmother when her father was out at sea. When his daughter was date raped (though she wasn't supposed to date at all in the first place), she had tried to get an abortion at a local clinic, knowing her father would never agree with such a procedure.

Still being a minor, they had asked for a consent form from a parent or guardian and when she couldn't provide one, she had faked her father's signature. But the doctor at the clinic had gotten suspicious and had gotten in touch with her grandmother and then the Captain, who had been mad as hell and had called the cops on his own child for falsification and to force her to name the man responsible, something she at first refused to do out of sheer stubbornness.

NCIS had been called in to investigate and Merri finally got her to admit that the father of her unborn child was an ensign on her father's ship, whom she had met when she had driven over to the harbor to meet her father for lunch. She had met the young sailor while waiting for him at the port, where he was just disembarking to go on leave. He had greeted the pretty girl warmly and asked her if he could help her find someone.

As soon as she had told him who she was, he had made a pass at her, charming her into going out with him that night, finding in her the perfect way to execute his revenge on the Captain, just because he'd been reprimanded one too many times. The impressionable young woman had fallen head over heels for the handsome young man in his dashing white uniform, not knowing that her first real love was just using her to get back at his CO.

She'd snuck out of her bedroom and past her grandmother, who was dozing in front of the TV (her father was out having dinner with some friends) and had met the young sailor at a sleazy café, where nobody cared to check her ID and notice she was under aged. He'd put something in her drink and the rest, as they say, was history.

In the end, they found and arrested the sailor and charged him with rape, but Dwayne had talked the Captain out of pressing charges against his daughter for the falsification, making him see that he would have to live with the breach of trust between him and his only child forever. Fences mended a little, it however didn't give his poor child a way out of her current state. She still didn't want to keep the baby for both emotional as well as practical reasons.

That night, as they discussed the aftermath of the case, Chris and Merri had a long conversation, feeling much the same way they had when Nigel had come into their lives.

It wasn't really a hard decision to make.

The next day, they told Alexandra that they would love to adopt her child. She agreed immediately, relieved her unborn child now at least would have a good home to go to. Having had good experiences with him before, Chris contacted Joe Winfield and with his help, got all the paperwork done in no time.

Three months later, Emilia Alexandra LaSalle made her entrance in their lives. She was a beautiful, healthy baby. They had prepared Nigel for the arrival of a sibling as best as they could and again, they were blessed when their now five year old son immediately claimed his baby sister as his own, watching over her every move with fierce protectiveness.

Admittedly, they were a handful, their kids, but they made a happy quartet now. And when they opened the door one morning to find Merri's parents on their doorstep, hearts laden with apologies and arms laden with gifts for their grandchildren, life only got better.

Days and years went by, with all the usual ups and downs and highlights. The family photo albums were filled with the usual pictures of birthdays, first days at school, holiday pics and sports event. True, there were bad times too, like the time they hurried to Washington when Gibbs was critically injured and that one dark night that Chris came home just in time to pry the gun from his brother's fingers and Cade was again admitted to a psychiatric ward and put on suicide watch. He would always be happy that then eight year old Nigel was camping with his school class and three year old Emilia was fast asleep and too young to realize her uncle was as sick as he was.

Luckily, the good days outnumbered the bad and they gave their kids a happy, stable childhood. They adjusted very well, were pretty well-mannered and even-tempered (most of the time) and had loads of friends in school, where they were not overly brilliant, but never a cause of trouble. The times they were called into the Principal's office were few and far between and nothing more than the result of a harmless prank, the originality of them giving their parents a secret laugh when they were done admonishing the culprit of the day.

Life trundled on, sometimes agonizingly slow, sometimes so fast it left them breathless and Merri was surprised when one morning she woke up and all of a sudden, she was sixty years old, Chris fifty-four, their son twenty-one and their daughter celebrating her sweet sixteen.

"Chris, watch out with that cake, please," she warned her husband when he stepped out into the courtyard of the NCIS Headquarters, his view obscured by the towering monstrosity he was carrying. The place was now run by no other than Sonja Percy and a whole new team of agents. King and Loretta had retired a few years ago, Merri had followed suit only a few months ago and Chris still stayed on as an advisor, a shot in the knee right after he had turned fifty sadly taking him out of active duty.

Their extended family still came together regularly though, their bond never wavering. Their kid's birthdays were always celebrated there too and so far, Merri was happy to notice that neither one of them was tired of it, wanting to celebrate with their own friends instead.

"I hear ya," Chris called back, limping toward the table and gladly setting the wobbling sugary concoction down, all the while feeling his wife's gaze on him. He knew she was worried whenever he walked without his cane, but damn him if he didn't have at least some pride left.

The bullet wound had been a bad one. Chris had been shot when he was chasing two armed robbery suspects (two recently dishonorably discharged Marines) into a seemingly innocent looking shop. When he entered the building, they had already killed the owner, holding a clerk hostage. They had opened fire immediately and Chris had taken a bullet in his right knee, fracturing his patella and shredding his ligaments and arteries.

The hostage situation took hours of negotiation and all the while, Chris couldn't get the help he needed. Only after the two thugs were finally taken out by an FBI sniper, did he get to the hospital. But there was a lot of damage and he had lost a fair amount of blood. The surgeons had been worried he would lose his leg altogether, but thanks to some newly developed techniques in vascular surgery and a transfusion, they had managed to save both his life and his leg, so the cane was merely a glitch as opposed to what could have happened instead. It only hadn't kept his wife from being worried sick about him and sometimes she still was.

Yet, when he glanced over at her, the look in Merri's eyes was not exactly one of worry. Instead, her glazed over brown orbs were focused on a bare patch of tan skin on his back where his shirt had ridden up. Because his jeans were sagging a little by the weight of the gun propped in his waistband out of sheer habit, he was showing his adorable dimples and maybe even the top bit of a surprisingly smooth Big Al. He grinned a lazy grin (busted, Brody!) and felt a familiar and not at all unwelcome jolt run up his spine as a cute blush spread across her sweet face.

Twenty years into their marriage and they still found each other the most attractive person in the world. Though they had both slowed down somewhat and their bodies had lost some of their natural flexibility, they were still both in admirable shape; his stomach as washboard as ever, his derriere firm and there was no muffin top piling over her jeans. Even her breasts had so far managed to defy gravity, mostly.

Sure, their hair was greying (and in his case perhaps a bit receding as well), there were a couple of more wrinkles, or rather laugh lines, around their eyes and mouths, but those mouths could still work magic and Chris would gladly make a bet that, if he and Merri would still use condoms, they would go through more of them than their son did with his girlfriend.

He smiled at the thought of Nigel 'Nick' LaSalle. He had joined the Marines fresh out of High School and his parents couldn't have been more proud of him. To see him head over heels in love with his high school sweetheart Judith (reminding him of his crush on Savannah) was another bonus. He liked his boy's choice in a girlfriend.

"Oh, good, cake's here," was the unconventional greeting of their daughter as she appeared from the kitchen with a pitcher of iced sweet tea in her hands, the cubes tinkling within their confinements. Chris raised his eyebrows at her and she quickly kissed her dad on the cheek. Whereas Nick (he had put a firm ban on his despised real name since he was twelve) had been a momma's boy from almost the very start, Emilia (Emmy, please) was a daddy's girl through and through. Of course she loved Merri and they got along quite well, but it was her dad she automatically gravitated towards; his advice and approval she sought first.

"And a good afternoon to you too, String Bean."

Emmy stuck her tongue out at the sound of her nickname. In a twist of fate, it wasn't their son, but their daughter who seemed to be made for the game of basketball, which she played on her High School team (she was a junior now) and which had already landed her a full scholarship at the University of Alabama, something which Chris especially was extremely proud of.

Tall, willowy and thin as a reed, she strongly resembled her biological mother. Chris and Merri had always been honest with both their kids about their adopted status. Nick knew all about his birth parents and he and Merri had even gone back to visit their graves and the orphanage in the summer before he joined the Marines.

Emmy had met her birth mother once. Alexandra had gotten married too and Emmy now had two half-siblings. Alexandra had since then moved to Germany though, where her husband worked for a big international firm and while they occasionally stayed in touch via social media, Chris and Merri were reluctant to let their daughter go and visit them. Maybe in a few years. If she wanted to. But so far, that one meeting seemed to have satisfied Emmy's curiosity and she had never asked for a plane ticket, happy with the limited contact Facebook and Skype allowed.

Emmy was a pretty young woman, who was also spotted by a modelling agency, but with not a hint of vanity in her, she had politely refused and remained focused on her sports career, something both he and Merri were none too secretly very happy with.

"Is Nicky coming?"

"Papa King is picking him up from the airport as we speak."

"Great. This party rocks already!"

In the past, Emmy's blind adoration for her older brother and Nick's protectiveness of his little sister had been cause for a lot of nasty altercations between the two of them, especially when Emmy proved to be somewhat of an adventure seeker and a tomboy in her preteens. Unhindered by the fact she was younger than her brother and a girl to boot, she followed him and his friends everywhere they went, until said friends finally had enough of their little groupie and demanded Nick sent her home. Torn between the love for his sister and the loyalty toward his friends, he had called Chris, who had come to pick up their youngest and had a long overdue talk with her. It's then that he and Merri encouraged her to find her own activities and it was then that Emmy had tried out for her Junior High Basketball team.

A huge hit from the start.

But that had been years ago and despite the fact they shared not a single thread of DNA, brother and sister were thick as thieves. When Nick had let them know he might not make it back from training camp in Paris Island to be there for Emmy's sweet sixteen, she had thrown a classic teenaged temper tantrum and had threatened to get anybody she could think of involved to get him over here, going as far as threatening to have Patton Plame (yes; he was still there too, still tinkering away with the latest software) misplace his files.

Whatever magic was done and whatever strings were pulled, it paid off and Nick's plane had just landed at the airport half an hour ago. Knowing how busy her parents were, organizing her party, King had volunteered to pick up his surrogate grandchild. He adored both LaSalle kids, even though Laurel had given him a granddaughter of his own ten years ago. Yet; she and her husband had moved many miles away to where he was stationed (yes; she had married a Naval officer) in Los Angeles and King hardly ever got to spend time with his little princess Andrea.

A car horn honked outside the gate and, excited as a little girl, Emmy shrieked and ran to open the gate. Indeed, it were papa King and Nick, looking splendid in his uniform, though quite a bit out of place in the cute buttercup yellow vintage Jeep they were riding in; a vehicle Emmy had never seen before.

"Nicky!"

Before the young man had gotten a chance to step out of the car, he was smothered in his sister's embrace. He hugged her back affectionately.

"Hey String Bean. Happy birthday, kiddo."

Too happy with his return, Emmy let the nickname slide and hugged papa King.

With all the guests assembled, the birthday girl cut the cake, Sebastian filming the entire procedure. Then, when they'd all had their fill of the sugar bomb, it was time for the gifts. Emmy was one happy girl that afternoon. A beautiful hand-painted scarf from Loretta, concert tickets from Sonja, seasonal tickets to the New Orleans Pelicans from papa King; a new pimped up tablet from Patton, with some crazy gadgets on it; all the newest movies and books she wanted, courtesy of Sebastian and last but not least…her family.

Merri approached her daughter first, holding a square, flat box.

"These were your aunt Emily's. She got them for our sixteenth birthday. She would have been so proud of you. I wore them at my wedding too, so she was very close to me. Now I think that your own sweet sixteen is a great time to pass them on."

She handed the box over to Emmy, who opened it and gasped. She was never much of a girlie-girl, but she had heard a lot about her aunt and knew what it had taken her mother to give these to her. So she hugged Merri and allowed her to put the string of pearls around her slender neck, not caring that they looked pretty ridiculous with her jeans and t-shirt.

"Thanks mom. I'll think of aunt Em every time I'll wear them."

They both knew that wouldn't be a lot of times, but still…

She now turned to her father and brother, who stood there with big smiles on their faces.

"Wanna know where your gift is, String Bean?"

"Of course I do, Jarhead brother of mine."

Chris smiled.

"Come on then. It was a little too big to have it gift-wrapped."

Curious, Emmy followed them outside the gate, her entire entourage trailing after her. Frowning, she didn't see anything resembling a gift, until her brother nodded in the direction of the Jeep he had arrived in.

"Seriously, Sis, you didn't think that ridiculous vehicle was mine or papa King's, did you?"

At long last the penny dropped and, shrieking with joy, she took the keys that were dangling from her father's hand and ran to the sweet yellow car that was now hers. Halfway over, she turned again to give her parents and brother a hug.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you. I love you guys!"

"We'll take turns giving you lessons, kiddo. Mom, dad and me." Nick promised, as he handed her her learner's permit.

She turned. "Daddy, can we go now? Please?"

Chris looked at Merri, who shrugged, smiling at her child's happiness.

"Go. Be careful. And get some more drinks, while you're at it."

With another high pitched shriek, Emmy got into her car (her own car!), impatiently waiting for Chris to climb in beside her, his stiff knee a hindrance he couldn't avoid. It took her several attempts to get the vehicle in motion, but when it went and it disappeared around the corner, Merri found herself a little teary eyed.

Her kids. All grown up. Nice kids too. She and Chris had done well.

Nick put his arm around his mother's shoulder.

"You okay, mom?"

She sniffled.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Nicky. I've never felt more blessed. I have everything I ever wanted."

"I think so too. We may not be a conventional family, but we are a wonderful one, aren't we?"

"We really are. A wonderful family."

Arm in arm with her son, Merri walked back through the gate and into the court yard. Back to where the rest of her family was waiting. And when Chris and Emmy joined them again later and the sun was setting, she sat hand in hand with her husband in the courtyard, sipping her wine and feeling absolutely content.

Chris, sensing her mood, pressed a kiss against her temple.

"Happy, Sweet Merri?"

"Very, very happy. We did good, didn't we, Christopher LaSalle?"

"That we did, Brodelicious. That we did."

The blush on her cheek sure was worth the elbow stabbed in his side.

THE END

 _So...that's all folks. Hope you enjoyed my story. Please, for the last time (for now anyway), let me know what you think. Thanks and I hope to "see" you all again some other time, some other story._


End file.
